


Heat of the Moment

by mjolnir_in_my_hands



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Abusive Naomi, Alternate Universe - High School, Assault, Awkward Castiel, Distant Chuck, Doctor Michael - Freeform, F/F, F/M, Homophobia, Homophobic Language, Hunter Dean, Hunter John, Late blooming Destiel, M/M, Mechanic John, OCD, Panic Attack, Popular Dean, Protective Lucifer, Protective Michael, Protective Winchester's all around, Sexual Assault, Social Anxiety, Teacher Bobby, Teacher Mary, The Family Business, actual bodily harm, sorry.
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-01-13
Updated: 2015-07-29
Packaged: 2018-03-07 11:22:52
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 20
Words: 110,342
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3172494
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mjolnir_in_my_hands/pseuds/mjolnir_in_my_hands
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Castiel Novak is a young high school student, moving with his family to Lawrence after tempers rose. <br/>Though starting again, meeting new people, making new friends. <br/>The journey of an awkward kid and a popular one, paths crossing.</p><p>Sorry, this is a bad summary.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. I never meant to be so bad to you...

**Author's Note:**

> This is what I had posted prior, though due to some shitty circumstances, I accidentally deleted my work. So I am going to re upload everything please stick with me, thank you!  
> New chapters have also been added thank you! ( :  
> And I hope you enjoy.

After a long summer, that for most including Dean Winchester consisted of late nights, parties and ‘hanging out’ as it were with friends. Though, rather Castiel's summer was spent packing up everything from his childhood, leaving his life in in New York city behind to start anew in Lawrence, Kansas.

After the Novak’s father, Chuck left the family when Castiel was merely a child, he has blamed himself for the absence, though he is not the only one to blame himself, after bringing up the five children, their mother then began to drink, and would often blame Castiel for her husband leaving, as though he had driven him away. Obviously, all of his brothers and his sister would constantly remind him that he had done nothing wrong, none of this was his fault. Though after years of verbal and some physical abuse, Castiel began to think his mothers words were true, he did drive Chuck away, in some way this was all his fault, and he deserved what he got.

His mother having always been a nurse, was not the largest part of his life, growing up it was Castiel’s three brothers and sister that have kept him company, practically raising him since the absence of both their mother and father in a sense. The oldest of the Novak children being Lucifer and Michael, both twins though not identical in senses of appearances, though in their loyalties to their family, both adored their father, growing up with  both him and their mother, they were as close as twins would be expected, their father being a priest, had been strong in religion, believing himself to be of the word of God, he was very strict in the way by which his sons would be brought up, all named after angels, and all attending church every Sunday, come rain or shine, sickness or health, there was never a missing member of the Novak family.

When Michael and Lucifer were three years of age, their sister Anael was born, both of her brothers adored her, there would never not be a day in which they were both sat in her room, beside her cradle singing her lullabies, singing the young child back to sleep. Though since both their mother was working and their father busy in his office, the two boys would spend most of their time looking after one another and their baby sister. Two years later, the boys being five years old and Anael being two years old, the newest addition to the family was born, Gabriel, once again everyone adored this young boy, Anael taking a specific liking to him. Though their mother seemed to be working more, leaving them in the care of their father who would spend the majority of the day in his office, or preaching to the children, though he never seemed to spend any ‘father’ time with them as one would expect, he was becoming distant with them all, including his wife Naomi. Though it was not until their youngest child Castiel was born that the distance between the children and their father became permanent. Only a few weeks after the beautiful blue eyed baby was brought home, Chuck left for what he said was a small trip in which to preach to those around, help other find ‘their true calling’. Though after three weeks without Chuck in the household, it became clear that he was not returning.

After that, their mother was working more often, leaving her two eldest sons to look after her other three children, all five of whom she neglected. As the years passed, the children grew, Lucifer and Michael became extremely protective over their younger siblings, they would not let any harm come to them, they would do anything for them. Eventually they both got small jobs in order to purchase small treats for their younger siblings after their mother would simply spend all day at work, then come home and  drink herself into a stew, then the day would start again. Though the children then became strong together.

Though once the abuse started at Castiel, he did not tell any of his siblings after the fear his mother had instructed upon him, forcing him to believe it was in fact his fault. Until one day, one day late June, Naomi finally snapped.

* * *

Their mother had come home from work as she usually would, walking through the doors as the others would scurry off to their rooms to escape the wrath that was Naomi Novak.

Walking through the doors, Naomi threw her bag on the floor, her shows scattered by the door and her coat thrown over the chair to her right, Chucks chair. She stared at it in disgust, remembering the man that used to adore her, used to adore _their_ children.

Turning away from the abandoned chair, she made her way to the kitchen, pulling open the cabinet door and grabbing a wine glass, to then turn to the fridge, she snatched the bottle closest to her and slammed the door closed. Sliding the glass onto the cabinet, she then made her way to the drawer on her left, pulling the corkscrew opener out, and in one quick movement opening the bottle. Expertly done from many years of practice, there is the certainty that she could more than likely complete this ritual, as it were, blindfolded.

Naomi then continued to poor the remainder of the bottle from the fridge into the glass on  the counter and drinking it there and then. Moving then to the fridge, glancing for another bottle in which to quench her thirst, after seeing the empty fridge, she starts to become short tempered in a manor of speaking, storming through the cupboards in search of another bottle.

Castiel cautiously came out of his room and down the stairs, curious what all the noise was coming from the kitchen, unbeknownst to him that their mother was home. It was not until he was down the stairs and turning the corner that he saw his mother stood there in the kitchen, empty bottle on the table side, and an empty glass in her hand, cupboard doors all open, the fridge door open and a lot of jars and food scattered around the kitchen floor.

After seeing the site and his mother, Castiel slowly backed away as quietly as he could, as to not attract the attention of his mother, though it was to no avail, she had turned around to see her son stood behind her in his pyjamas, hair wild, stiffening eyes and back straigtening.

He looked back at his mothers ravenous eyes, she simply stood there staring at him, he could see the hatred in her eyes, he awaited the profanity and homophobic slurs that were sure to follow. Though what he did not anticipate was the hurling glass flying at his face from the other side of the room.

Before he knew what was happening, there was a glass hitting the left side of his face, it shattered into pieced, slicing his skin as he involuntarily cried out in pain, feeling a warm, sticky substance seeping down the side of his face. Within seconds, his brother Gabriel was at the top of the stairs, upon seeing his younger brother sitting near the kitchen door, cradling his face and shattered glass around him, he shouted for his older siblings: MICHAEL! LUCIFER! ANNA! QUICK!“ As soon as he had finished shouting, his siblings were running out of their rooms, and again upon seeing their little brother vulnerably sat on the floor, glass surrounding him, they all sprinted down the stairs, Anna and Gabriel surrounding Castiel, seeing the impact of the damage, Michael spoke softly to them all, seeing the shock upon their faces “Take him upstairs, clean his face, there is a medical kit in my room, grab that and Gabriel, give him some of your candy.” He said calmly, as his siblings just sat there looking at him, shock still evident on their faces, he knew he would need to be a little sterner “MOVE!” He almost shouted, though they were both quickly up on their feet, grabbing a side of the shaking Castiel each, and slowly leading him up the stairs to the bathroom.

Sitting him on the toilet seat as Gabriel ran into Michaels room to get the medical kit and his room, grabbing some of his secret supply of candy in the hopes of calming his brother a little. He made his way back to the bathroom, handing Anna the kit as he took the blood soaked towel from her hands. “Gabriel, there is glass in his skin, what am I supposed to do… Do we wait for Michael, He has learnt all about this?” Anna spoke quickly, hands shaking and voice trembling

Gabriel simply looked to Castiel, horror sketched into his face, seeing his younger brother, the happy, chirpy kid he always was holding his knees, shaking, blood driping down his face and soaking into his sweater, they stared for a moment before the door gently opened, revealing the two eldest Novak boys.

* * *

Back downstairs, Lucifer and Michael were stood screaming at their mother whilst she just stood there, with a bored look on her face, no remorse to be seen. After a few minutes of her sons shouting, she simply walked past them, grabbing her bag from the floor and walking out of the door, no shoes or coat, simply her bag, leaving both Michael and Lucifer bewildered, staring at the door.

The two brothers shared a look and a small nod before making their way up the stairs to their younger siblings.

* * *

Michael calmly made his way over to Castiel, taking the medical kid from Anna, removing the tweezers and getting to work as Lucifer took the hands of his brother and sister, leading them, reluctantly, away from the bathroom and back to his room. He motioned towards his bed, and his younger siblings sat, as he chose the chair oposite. He spoke softly and calmy to Anna and Gabriel, both of whom still had not spoken a work, though Gabriel had moved closer to Anna and pulled her close to him, in a way to comfort his sister and himself.

“Michael and I have spoken and we have decided that we are moving. We have been thinking about this for a while, what with mothers… ‘problem’.” Even at the mention of her name, both Anna and Gabriel forced themselves to be strong and not show weakness, though all they could think was how could the woman who had carried them, loved them, cared for them, fed them, do something like this. They knew she had never been the same since their father left, though they never thought things had gotten this bad. Everyone in the household knew about her drinking problem, though only Castiel knew about the abuse, he did not want to burden his brothers and sister with his problems.

“We found a small house and have saved enough in order to buy it, what with the inheritance money and our own money, we are going to find jobs when we get there, Anna, there is a college close by which you can attend, or if you look further afield, there is still the college fun of your that you may use, or we can take a loan if needs be. Gabriel, you will finish your final year in the school close by, as will Castiel finish his final two years, and we can all be away from… _Her._ ” Lucifer said with a small, comforting smile as he stood up, walking to his siblings and putting his arms around them both. After a short embrace, he told them to pack whatever they could, anything they didn’t need to leave behind, they were leaving tonight and never coming back. They both left his room swiftly and made it to their own rooms, packing everything they wanted, photographs, clothes, memorabilia, books, technology, whatever was needed.

Lucifer then made his way back to the bathroom where Michael was just finishing taking the glass out of Castiel's face. His brother then gave him a small look to which he returned with a slight nod of the head, as Michael then turned his attention back to cleaning the cuts. They were not too deep and would not scar, though they still needed to be cleaned and plastered up. After Michael had finished, he grasped Castiel's hand in his own and told him of their plan.

Though he was still shaken up, he smiled slightly at the thought of being away from this hell and starting anew with his family, those that loved and accepted him. Michael slowly helped him to his feet and led him to his bedroom where they packed his bags together. Lucifer then turned to his own room, packing his belongings and then Michael’s.

As soon as he finished packing he made his way downstairs as the others were still busy packing, though Michael and he had packed the majority of their belongings a few weeks ago when the idea first arose. Once downstairs, he cleaned the remaining glass, sweeping it into the bin, and made some snacks and drinks to put in the car for the journey.

The others slowly made their way downstairs, bags in hand, first Gabriel carrying two large suitcases and a bag, placing them by the door, Anna followed closely, again two suitcases in tow and two bags, she made her way beside Gabriel to the sofa, awaiting further instructions. Castiel was still upstairs with Michael, slowly but surely packing his belongings, making sure to neatly pack all of his books and DVD’s.

After a moments silence, Lucifer came out of the kitchen, handing Gabriel the bag of food and instructing him and Anna to take the bags to the car, and that the rest would be out soon.

Making his way back up the stairs, he saw Michael and Castiel slowly coming out of his room with his suitcases behind him and another three bags on his back and on the suitcases. It was a good thing they had a large car to fit all of this in. He then continued into his room, bringing his bags to the door, before heading back into Michael’s room and bringing his bags also.

As Michael then made his way back into the car, seeing their three younger siblings all sitting quietly in the back seats, he dragged his bags to the car and settled himself in, giving a reassuring look to his brothers and sister.

Lucifer gave the house one last look, setting everyone's house keys on the table, alongside a small white letter, addressed _Mother_ on the front, the letter read:

**_Goodbye mother, this is the last you will hear of us. Since you are incapable of loving and taking care of your children, Michael and I are moving away with them. Do not try and contact anyone. If we hear you have tried to get in contact with any of them then we will not hesitate to inform the authorities of your abuse._ **

-          **_Lucifer._**

As Lucifer then pulled the door to, locking it and pushing the last key through the letterbox, he grabbed his bags, wheeling them to the car and packing the final items in before closing the door and making his way to the drivers seat. Once he was sat in, he looked at his brother before starting the ignition, looking at their old family house one more time before pulling out of the driveway and out of their old street.

_No one knowing what lies ahead, though all knowing that everything from now on would be better than their lives so far._


	2. One thing I said that I would never do...

After around four hours of driving, Lucifer is beginning to have trouble keeping his eyes open, driving through the empty dark roads of Pennsylvania, he notices a small motel, a bright shining ‘Vacancies’ sign hanging from the pole.

Looking over at his sleeping siblings, he looks back to Michael, sat straight and awake in the seat to his left. Lucifer motions to the motel, his brother agreeing as they take a sharp left, turning into the small car park in the front of the motel.

As Lucifer parks the car, Michael turns back to his younger siblings, gently nudging each one in turn, first Anna who slowly awakens noticing they are no longer in New York City. Next, nudging Gabriel it takes much longer before the boy is awake; finally, turning to Castiel, they see the young boy asleep and calm, wishing they did not have to wake him up. Though they all knew how he would react waking up in a foreign exterior, this was best for all, and so cautiously, Gabriel took Castiel's hand, nudging his little brother awake.

After a few moments, Castiel's eyes began to open, he felt fear, not knowing where he was, or what was happening until he saw his siblings dimly lit faces, bringing his hand up to the side of his face, the events of the evening slowly came back to him. Remembering that they had just left home, and now, where were they? There was a small sign behind his sisters head that read: ‘Mechanicsburg Motel’ in bright white lights with a green exterior.

After having all sat in silence for a while looking to one another, Michael was the first to make a move, opening his door and stepping out into the cool summer breeze, pulling his coat around his shoulders. Lucifer was next to follow taking the keys from the car, Anna was next with Gabriel following closely behind. Castiel was the last to leave the car, Gabriel returning to his door to open his door, and take his hand, leading him away from the cool air surrounding them and into the warmth of the motel.

Gabriel, Anna and Castiel stood in the corner by the door whilst Lucifer and Michael paid for a room in which the family could spend the night.

Once all was paid, the younger Novak’s followed closely behind their older brothers, walking up the stairs and to the third door on the left, Lucifer producing the key and opening the door, all following behind with Michael closing the door behind and locking the door once more.

The room was not large, though it was big enough to house the five children; there was one double bed and one single bed within the small confines of the room, a small kitchen, table and an armchair. Castiel, Gabriel and Anna all slept in the double bed, Lucifer in the single bed and Michael settled into the comfortable armchair facing the sleeping form of his siblings.  

As the night goes past, Michael stays sat in the chair watching over his siblings, watching as they all sleep through, Gabriel with his arm possessively draped over Castiel as he sleeps in the middle of both Gabriel and Anna as a small form of comfort to them all. Lucifer has stayed stock still through the night in his bed to their left, the blanket pulled up around his throat.

* * *

Early the next morning, Castiel is the first to wake, opening his eyes slowly, he noticed that through the night he had curled up in the middle of the bed, his brothers arm still over him and his sister clutching to the blanket over them all. Sitting up slowly, making sure not to wake his brother or sister, his eyes slowly adjusting to the light streaming through the windows, he noticed his eldest brother Michael in the arm chair looking helplessly out of the large, open window. As he slowly manoeuvred out of the bed, Michael looked around to see his younger brother, both sharing wordless glances, Michael standing and walking into the kitchen, Castiel in tow. Once in the kitchen, Castiel could see Michael in the light, he could see his dark rumpled hair, sticking up all over the place, his tired blue eyes, framed with dark bags, to say the least he looked terrible.

Though he knew better than to comment on his brother’s appearance as such, instead he simply averted his gaze, choosing to look to the floor as though in search of guidance. Michael once more was the first to speak: “Shall we make pancakes? that ought to wake the rest of them up.” He said as chirpily as he could, in the hopes that Castiel would not know he had not slept, a false smile plastered on his face in the hopes of lightening the spirit in the room. Castiel responded with a small smile and a nod, and the two got to work. Michael found the bag Lucifer had packed the night beforehand, finding they did not have the milk, he instructed Castiel to wait there in case the others woke, whilst he walked down the road and bought some milk.

Upon his return, Michael noticed that Castiel had drifted back to sleep in the chair, he looked down smiling at his youngest, innocent brother. As quietly as he could, he placed the milk on the countertop, alongside some other small sweet and sugary items he had bought for their pancakes.

Turning around as he heard shuffling, he noticed Castiel had awoken once more and was stood behind him. He put his arms around his big brother, hugging him tightly as Michael reciprocated; they stood like that for a while before they parted with smiles on their faces and got to work on the pancakes.

The batter was swiftly made; it only took three attempts after Castiel used salt instead of sugar in the first mix and then dropped the majority of the second mix over himself. Though after he had cleaned up, they tried again and this time made a pretty damn good effort.

Slowly but surely, their remaining siblings awoke from the pleasant smell radiating from the kitchen, Gabriel was the first one to wake up, full of energy as usual, especially upon seeing the sugary goods and the pancakes on the table. Anna was next and closely followed by Lucifer.

All five siblings were sat around the table eating their pancakes and drinking their coffee in an eerie silence, a silence that Gabriel did not like, the self-proclaimed trickster decided that there had to be something he could do to lighten the mood, and that something just happened to come in the form of food.

Gabriel began by grabbing the bottle of syrup in front of him and squeezing a generous amount onto his pancake, this, the Novak’s thought nothing of; Gabriel has always been known to have a sweet tooth in more way than one. Though he then stood from the table and made his way to the fridge, moments later he returned to the table with an assortment of ingredients, including: tomato ketchup, Cheetos, pickles, ham, cheese, jam and a number of other random pieces.

At this his siblings all slowly turned to look at him, curious to see what was to follow. Looking to one another, in thought of what he may have planned, though knowing him as they did, there was the thought that all of this food would no doubt create a hilarious disaster for all involved.

Without looking to his siblings, Gabriel piled the ingredients onto his plate. He began by opening the small bag of Cheetos placed in front of him, taking a handful and expertly spreading them over his syrup soaked pancake.

At this, both Michael and Lucifer shared a knowing glance that this was in Gabriel’s best efforts to cheer his siblings up, the only way he knows how, and they will be damned if they are going to stop him, though also because they want to see how far he is willing to take his sweet addiction.

The next step to his ‘ _masterpiece’_ is layering three slice of cheese, two pieces of ham, a layer of strawberry jam, a little ketchup, a pickle, sugar, a squeeze of lemon juice, and for the _piece de resistance,_ Gabriel pulled out a small box of multi-coloured sprinkles, shaking them upon the tower in front of him.

His siblings stare in wonder at their brother as he hesitantly, and carefully, picks up his pancake, looking to his siblings and speaking a quick “Allons-y!” before taking a large mouthful. Everyone looking from Gabriel to their other siblings and back again.

Slowly, he chews his pancake, everyone still watching him to see what will happen, a look of confusion appears upon his face, though that is quickly moved by the look of pure joy, a huge smile playing upon his face as he says: “Fantastic!”, laughing at his own joke. Though he then adds a small “Could do with a little more syrup though…” as he says this, he reaches ahead once more, taking the bottle of syrup, loading more onto his pancakes as he takes another bite.

Castiel is the first to respond, bursting out laughing at his brother, the sound of his innocent laughter filling the room and warming everyone’s hearts, it is not long before his siblings, once by one, all joining laughing, Gabriel admiring his work as his family is happy together again.

* * *

 After their little adventure during breakfast, everyone was in a much lighter mood; Michael even managed to fall asleep briefly, not worrying about what would happen for he knew they would all be okay.

Though when Castiel heads to the bathroom, he is happy until he washes his hands, looking in the mirror and seeing the small cuts scattering the left side of his face, a small reminder of his mother’s wrath. After staring at his face for what felt like an eternity, there was a soft knock on the door, followed by “Hey bro, hurry up. I gotta take a leak!” The small comment from Gabriel bringing him back to reality, reminding him he is no longer alone in this, that she cannot hurt him anymore, knowing that everything would be okay from there onwards.

Smiling to himself at this small realisation, Castiel slowly made his way to the door, unlocking it and opening to the waiting Gabriel, still smiling. “Dude, what is up?” he asked hesitantly, seeing the smile, thinking Castiel must have done something ‘funny’ “What did you do? I swear if you have blocked that toilet I am not cleaning it!”

Confused at his brothers questioning, Castiel simply wrapped his arms around the stocky frame that was Gabriel. It took him a moment before he realised what was happening, though quickly wrapped his own arms around his little brother, bringing him in close, he would hold him as long as needs be. Though hopefully not too long, he still had to pee.

It was Castiel this time who spoke first, speaking a soft “I love you Gabe” into his brothers shoulder.

Gabriel responding by softly saying “I love you too Cassie…” before letting go of him and nudging his shoulder gently “…Now budge, I gotta pee!” and with that he was gone and the noise of a click was heard as Castiel walked back to the rest of his siblings smiling once more.

* * *

It was not long before the Novak children were back in the car, finishing the final fourteen hours of their journey to get to their new home in Lawrence, Kansas.

This section of the journey was light and joyful, everyone was talking, and all were excited for their new beginning. Especially Castiel.

Though Gabriel it seemed had finally endured the sugar high from his mountain of a breakfast, the journey consisted of many annoying little jokes and pranks, most aimed at Michael and Anna, whilst a few were thrown to Castiel, all finding joy in the situation.

Half way through their journey, Gabriel, Anna and Michael looked over to Castiel, noticing that he had been quieter than in the beginning, though what they were met with was a sleeping boy, feet on the chair, trench coat around him, pulled tightly around his small frame and the carefree face of the young boy. They all looked to one another, and slowly, followed in a similar manor, falling asleep in their chairs, curling up to one another for warmth and comfort.

After this, Lucifer looked over to his siblings, noticing their peaceful states; even Michael had fallen asleep, which meant a happy family.

* * *

Seven hours later, Lucifer was pulling up once more to a small motel situated within Lawrence, Kansas.                

After all waking as the car came to a stop, Michael turned around to address his younger siblings: “Alright, we are going to be staying here tonight, then Lucifer and I will go into town tomorrow and sign all the legal documents to the house, and we can move in if all goes well tomorrow.” That announcement was met with a round of excited cheering as they all excited the car and headed towards the open doors to the motel.

Once Michael had settle the bill and got the room keys he handed them out “Okay, Anna, you will be sharing with Gabriel and Castiel tonight, and Lucifer and I will be staying in the room down the corridor, these are the only rooms left so they will have to do. There is a double bed and a single bed, Anna you will take the single bed-” he directed to the young red headed girl who nodded her approval before turning his attention to his two younger brothers “-and Gabriel, you and Castiel will be sharing the double bed okay.” The brothers again nodded their agreement before Gabriel grabbed the key from Michaels grasp, turning to lead his siblings to their room.

Though before they made it down the hall, Michael shouted once more to them all “And please go to sleep, we have an early start in the morning, and do not think we do not have a spare key, and that we will hesitate opening that door, and possibly have out means of waking you all.” He said motioning towards the ice machine on his left, the trio quickly agreed before racing to their room leaving a content Michael and Lucifer by their own doors.

Both Michael and Lucifer quickly settled into their separate beds, falling asleep almost instantly after the eventful day. Though their peaceful state did not last long as they both awoke to banging on the walls from the next room. They shared a concerned glance before the sexual noises began. At this, they both began to laugh with one another, Michael choosing to wrap his pillow around his ears as to muffle the noises, whilst Lucifer opted for headphones and loud music.

Lucifer slowly fell asleep to the sound of Asia: _Do you remember when we used to dance, and incidents arose from circumstance. One thing led to another we were young, and we would scream together songs unsung._                


	3. One look from you and I would fall from grace...

As Lucifer awoke to the sun streaming through the half torn blinds resting in the window, he rubbed the dust from his eyes and sat up in bed. Looking to his left he saw Michael still fast asleep, curled into a tight ball in the middle of his bed, the blankets tight around his small frame.

As quietly, and carefully as he could, Lucifer got out of bed, making his way to the bathroom to clean himself ready for the day ahead, the day in which they would finally be able to sign the forms and own the house. He was both nervous as hell and excited like a child on Christmas, firstly the thought of having to be responsible for his three younger siblings, though Michael was there to help, though they can finally make a fresh start. Maybe they will even enjoy this town, Castiel might make some friends, he was not worried about Gabriel and Anna on that front, the two had always been good with people and making friends easily wherever they were. Though Castiel on the other hand was not so good around people, both Michael and Lucifer believe him to have social anxiety, though they would not push him through it, hopefully the kid can become confident here, make a few friends and just enjoy his final years of high school before he is off to college. Though they know it will not be easy, having Gabriel at the same school with him will be both a blessing and a curse, he will have to not only put up with his frantic behaviour an pranks at home, though at school too, though he will be there and be able to protect Castiel if anything were to go wrong, so for that they were grateful.

After standing, contemplating their new life, he was startled to look back to the mirror and notice a body behind him, turning around fast as lightning, toothbrush raised in defence above his head, Lucifer quickly realised it was his brother, not a deranged murderer. He let out a small breath he did not know he was holding, “Jeez Mike, you cannot sneak up on someone like that in a motel bathroom, I could have killed you!” he spoke quickly, lowering his toothbrush to hide it behind his back.

“Oh of course, cannot be too careful when someone has a what, Hello Kitty toothbrush was that?” he said smirking at his brothers reddening face.

“Shut up, it was the only one they had left, and I don’t see you complaining about the Batman toothbrush I see there.” He teased motioning to the small black Batman toothbrush in the small cup on the sink.

“Hey! Batman could annihilate Hello Kitty in a flash!” Michael responded, punching his brother lightly on the shoulder as the two laughed to one another.

“Hey, do you think it is almost time to make sure the kids are up?” Lucifer said smirking at Michael with a mischievous glint in his eye.

“Why brother mine, I do think they should all be awake, though if not, one cannot say they were not warned.” He joked, closing the door to finish the morning ritual before packing up the final belongings into the car.

* * *

Further down the hall, Castiel is sat opposite Anna on the end of her neatly made bed, both dressed and packed, looking over towards the sleeping Gabriel, wondering whether their brothers would keep to their promise, though knowing Lucifer as they did, he would not pass on this golden opportunity.

Though before the two could make any good on their thoughts the door slowly, quietly opened to reveal two brothers and a bucket of ice, looking from Michael to Lucifer, they saw him raise his index fingers to his lips, signalling their silence.

They swiftly moved from the bed to gain a better view whilst their brothers tiptoed over to Gabriel’s bedside, bucket still in their hands. As the two came to a halt, they raised the bucket above Gabriel’s head before Lucifer quickly motioned to his brother, halting their plans he took out his phone and opened up an alarm sound, ready to press play. As they then raised the bucket once again, Lucifer pressed pay as an extremely loud alarm played, Gabriel jumping awake, only to have a large bucket of ice poured over his head. Jumping out of bed and shouting for the ice falling down his back, shaking like a dog that has just come in from the rain.

His four siblings falling to the floor in laughter, clutching their sides as Gabriel begins to glare daggers into their skulls, though noticing they are not paying any attention, he quickly collected a large quantity of the ice cubes and began pelting his brothers and sister with them, hitting Michael square in the chest three times before pouring a large amount down the back of Lucifer’s trousers, watching the two squirm and run around the room as he stood there laughing with his two remaining siblings.

* * *

After a small ice war, all was packed and the five were back in the car, on their way into town, with Lucifer once again driving and Michael riding shotgun.

As they turned into the car park in the centre of town, the youngest trio all jumped out of the car, running excitedly in all directions before Lucifer shouted to them all “We meet back here in three hours! That will be what-” he looks down to his watch, seeing it is almost eleven o’clock, much to his surprise, it seems their little war earlier must have been commencing longer than he imagined, “-two o’clock. By then Michael and I will have the keys and the papers, and you three can look around.” he said walking to them all and handing some money to his siblings “But Gabriel, Do not spend all of this on sweets! Or if you do at least make sure you buy a film and enough to share!” and with that they were all gone.

Lucifer turned back to his brother, a look of excitement painted upon both faces as Michael began to run “Race you Luci!” he shouted over his shoulder as they made their way to the estate agents.

Running to the door, both out of breath though Michael there first, “Ha! I win, that means you have to buy the tea tonight!” he said breathlessly, though still managing to keep his composure to look smugly to his brother, sticking his tongue out in a childish manner.

Though he hated having to buy tonight’s meal, he was happy to be able to see this carefree side of his brother that had been emerging over the past two days, a side he had not seen since they were children. And with that, everything was worth it, though he was not happy about losing never the less. “That’s not fair! You started before me! Of course you won, though I tell you now, I shall win the next round and when I do, _you_ have to do the washing up!” he said with a smile as he opened the door to the estate agents, motioning for Michael to enter first.

* * *

As Gabriel ran, no doubt to the closes sweet store, Anna ran to the busy section of town, whilst Castiel to a more secluded area, one in which he was sure would not be as busy, less people. That was what he liked, taking his book out, opening it to the page he had left it on earlier that morning, he placed his small Batman bookmark to the last page whilst keeping his hand in place of his current page.

As he brought the book to a comfortable position in his hand, he reinserted his headphones dangling from the front of his shirt into his ears, making sure the left headphone was in the left ear and the right in his right ear. As he pressed play, Ramble on by Led Zeppelin began playing

_Leaves are falling all around, it’s time I was on my way. Thanks to you, I’m much obliged for such a pleasant stay. But now it’s time for me to go. The autumn moon lights my way. For now I smell the rain, and with it pain, and it’s headed my way. Sometimes I grow so tired, but I know I’ve got one thing I got to do…_

Continuing to walk, he increases the volume in order to drown out the noise of those talking around him, one mechanism in which to refrain from the constant fear of people talking or laughing at him as he walks by.

Walking down the street, book in hand, it isn’t until he turns to the next page that he sees a drawing, one he had forgotten was in there, it was a drawing of a pair of black wings, exquisite detail. The drawing reminded him of how much he liked the idea of having his own set of wings, being able to simply escape any situation, nothing tying him down in a sense though rather he was free to do anything he wishes. Love anyone he wanted. Be anything he needed. There were no limitations, the wings made him think of how he had nothing to worry about, that he flew away from his troubles that were his mother, and started anew. Being able to rise above the tormenting and anything that may be thrown at him. These wings reminded Castiel of everything he needed.

Tucking this drawing into the back of his book, Castiel carried on walking down the street, not knowing where exactly he was going through being so engrossed in his book, though luckily he only walked into one lamppost through his expedition.

Though as he turned left down another path, he walked into a number of people walking together, muttering small apologies as he walked on faster in order to be away from people once more, this was when he walked past a music shop and decided to go in, remembering he had left most of his CD’s back in his old ‘home’.  He walked through, to the back where the _rock_ section was placed, looking through for any of his favourite CD’s, remembering the extra money he had from Lucifer on top of the money he had in his back pocket he had a fair bit in all.

After half an hour of searching, Castiel came to the cash register with seven CD’s and a number of posters to lighten his new room. It wasn’t long before he was leaving the shop, putting his headphones back in and taking his book out once more. It was not long until he bumped into someone once more, a young green eyed boy, around his age. Though he did not notice this boy though rather apologised for walking into him, not looking into any faces, opening his book once more and carrying on his journey.

Though he may not have noticed this boy, it did not mean this certain boy did not notice him; the undoubtable sex hair, the nervous movements, the book and most of all the Star Trek top, to say the least he was intrigued by this young boy, especially as he heard the slight faint of Metallica playing through his headphones. ‘ _Not bad for a nerd, Star Trek was obvious, but the Rock music…’_ though before he could talk to the guy, he was already making his way down the street, book in hand. That was until he suddenly stopped outside of a shop, looking through the door with a sense of wonder, to then cautiously enter as he took a piece of paper from the back of the book he had been reading.

* * *

As Castiel stood there, he saw the unusual markings on the door and windows, realising he was standing outside of a tattoo parlour, it was then that he remembered the drawing of the wings in the back of his book. He cautiously took the piece of paper from his book, lacing his bookmark in and closing it. With the drawing in hand, he took a breath and walked into the shop.

As he was inside, he noticed another man sat in a chair, a pattern being drawn onto his back, though Castiel quickly looked away as people began to notice the shy boy stood there. He cautiously made his way to the desk in the right hand side of the shop, where he was greeted by a young man, slightly stocky with short, dark brown hair and dark eyes. The man looked slightly menacing, though upon closer inspection he seemed lighter, especially as he spoke to Castiel, the menacing look was no more threatening. “Hello Darling” he said with a charming smile, “And how can I help you today?”

Castiel was taken aback by the prominent British accent the man was sharing, though was not feeling as awkward as he usually felt in social situations, though these conditions were a first. “I would like a tattoo please.” He said quietly, looking to his hands as he spoke.

“Well, you have come to the right place.” The man joked as he walked around the desk separating the two and motioning for Castiel to follow, “Come, sit.” He said as they reached a rather large black chair in the corner of the shop. “So, this your first tattoo?” he asked as he motioned for Castiel to sit on the chair.

“Yes, sorry, yes it is.” He said looking nervously down at his hands still, scolding himself for apologising, he seemed to have a habit of saying sorry at the end and throughout most sentences, though could not seem to be able to stop, no matter how much be wanted to, many had told him how annoying his little habit had become, which only served to knock his self-confidence further and resulted in him apologising more, or simply refraining from speaking in an attempt not to annoy those around him.

“Hey. It’s okay, so do you have any ideas what you want and where you want it?” he asked looking to Castiel as he lifted his head slightly looking into the kind eyes of the man who smiled slightly as Castiel returned the gesture, he stretched his hand to Castiel, speaking once more before Castiel replied to his question, “Crowley.” He said simply as Castiel took his hand, he had a firm hand shake, not too tight, though it was not weak.

“Castiel.” He replied timidly to the man, Crowley. “And I was thinking please if I could possibly have these wings please.” He said nervously to him, handing over the drawing from his book.

“Of course Castiel, this is a good drawing, did you do it?” he asked handing the picture back to Castiel as he moved to grab a pack of antiseptic wipes from a table close.

“Yes, I did, a while back actually. I was thinking I would like it on my left wrist please, somewhere people cannot see it easily, though I can see it without much effort, a small reminder.” He spoke the words fondly, thinking of the meaning behind the wings.

* * *

An hour later, Castiel was on his way out of the tattoo shop with the wings on his wrist, though covered with a small plaster.

He walked slowly back in the direction he had come noticing it was nearing two o’clock already. As he was walking down the path, he noticed his brother Gabriel standing outside of a sweet shop, leaning on the wall, lollipop in his mouth, talking to a tall brunet. Playing absent-mindedly with the lower hem of the boy’s shirt as they spoke, they seemed to be getting on well, which is when an idea came to Castiel.

Noticing his brother was completely engrossed in this stranger, as expected he did not notice Castiel as he walked close to his brother before jumping up to him with a loud “Boo!” as Gabriel screamed like a young girl at the unexpected contact. The stranger stood there laughing as Castiel began to run away, his brother following closely behind, shouting “Bye!” to the young boy before turning his attention back to his brother and shouting “I’m gonna get you for that Cassie!” Both brothers running and giggling like children as they make it to the car where Lucifer, Michael and Anna are stood talking.

Castiel then runs in front of Michael, using him as a human shield whilst Gabriel finally makes it to his brother, trying to squeeze past as they all laugh to one another.

* * *

Finally, after a little payback of his own, they were all in the car and on their way to their new home. All excited as the other, Gabriel talking animatedly about the boy he was talking to, for Castiel to then jump in telling them how Gabriel reacted to his surprise, everyone laughing to Gabriel’s misfortune.

Finally, after a short drive, Lucifer pulled up outside of a moderate sized home, a small green lawn out front, with a driveway and garage, two floors. The house facing a number of other houses all spaced along a large stretch of road, houses on either side, similar looking. It was a nice neighbourhood, quiet and friendly, there were people out on mowing their lawns, walking their dogs and young children playing happily with one another. All five could see themselves liking it here.


	4. And that would wipe the smile right from my face...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Description of abuse (flashback), if this is something that could cause a chain reaction, I am truly sorry.

After a long and eventful summer for the Novak residence, it was finally drawing to an end, both Castiel and Gabriel would be going back to school tomorrow, to a new school no less, new people and new timetables.

The beginning of the year has always been a nerve wracking time for Castiel, having to enter new classes, ones in which may be home to those choosing to torment him or falter his education, though mostly the thought of having to enter the new class, without any friends and simply having to seem invisible once more. Not that he minded per say, it was much easier to concentrate on his work without people around him, though it was always when it came to working in pairs or for group projects that he struggles. Most would groan and complain when the teacher would set assigned groups rather than letting them choose, though for Castiel this simply meant he would not have to be the awkward loner that would either end up working alone or having to be put into a group with other people because no one realises he is actually in the class alongside them.

Though this time it will be different, he is going to try and talk to someone, that is if his anxiety does not get the better of him, try to make a friend in his classes, maybe in this school he won’t have to eat alone in the bathrooms. Though that is mainly the fact of being incredibly uncomfortable both around others eating, and people seeing him eat, another charming aspect to his personality, it has always phased him why people would not be swarming around the geeky, weird, antisocial freak that is Castiel, something he seems to make up with a sarcastic personality.

Though this is what he has always told himself, though somehow he always ends up in the same place, always afraid that people are going to become bored of him from all his little ‘quirks’ as many have put it, that they will find him annoying, especially through his habit of apologising for every small detail, may that be after asking a question or stating a point, though the apology always seems to follow. There is then the slight obsessive compulsive disorder to add on top of that, so all in all, it is quite a handful, especially with those that will make it their mission to point out every flaw they see because that just makes it so much easier to deal with.

Sitting on his bed, this is all that is flowing through his mind, contemplating every aspect of his being whilst waiting for the day to finally finish so that he can start the new day, and finally get the first day of school out of the way.

Castiel can hear the muffled excitement radiating from his brothers voice as he runs around his other siblings downstairs, shouting about how exciting this new school will be, how he cannot wait to start and has already got a number of pranks set up, ready to put himself on the metaphorical map as it were. Though Castiel can then also hear his brother singing about how he plans to bag himself someone, though he has not yet seen anyone that takes his fancy.

Gabriel came out as bisexual to their family a few years back, and considering the Novak’s were a fairly religious family, or at least their mother, estranged father and eldest brother Michael -following in his father’s footsteps- were, overall, they were very accepting to this new set of information, this then gave Castiel the courage to tell his family he was gay. Gabriel was his closest brother, both in age and bond, they shared most things and so he had known even before Castiel had opened up to him, the rest of his siblings followed, and all were accepting of his sexuality, although Michael may not have been overly fond of this revelation, he still accepted and loved his little brother, and in his words, ‘Nothing will ever change that! You are my little brother and I will always love you, no matter who you choose to love.’ After a lot of consideration, he finally decided it was time to tell his mother; after all she had been so accepting of Gabriel, what harm could this do?

He can still remember that day as though it were yesterday:

**_Three years prior, at the age of thirteen was when Castiel Novak knew he was gay and there was no other way around it, he had accepted that fact, and at this point, so had most of his family._ **

**_Naomi Novak opened the door to her home, marvelling at the emptiness she felt seeing this, the house her and her husband had once bought, before he had left them after he youngest son, Castiel was born._ **

**_She took the bottle of wine from the fridge and poured it into a glass, taking the bottle and the glass with her, she made her way into the living room, setting herself down on the sofa and turning on the television to wallow in her own self-pity. Taking large gulps of the wine as though it was water, though after such a long time of drinking, it had begun to have a similar taste to it. Once the bottle was finished, she set her glass down with shaky hands, turning back to the television and pushing her feet onto the table, knocking whatever was resting upon it tumbling to the floor. Someone can clean that up in the morning she thought, I’ll be damned if I am going to clean the house and work._ **

**_Castiel knew that he had been putting this off for too long, he needed to tell her of his sexuality and get it over with, there was no point in hiding any longer, and so that is exactly what he did. He walked down the stairs to where his mother was sat, and although seeing the empty bottle of wine, this did not faze him; it was not much that his mother would not be surrounded by alcohol and they all knew this._ **

**_He walked to her side, “Mother, I need to speak with you.” He said as calmly as he could, even though his hands were shaking and his palms sweaty, he only hoped she could not see this, he was like an animal, being able to smell the fear of another and taking advantage on said fear._ **

**_Even through the slurred speech, he could tell she was not accepting, nor would she ever be. It wasn’t like he was expecting her to be over the moon about this, though after her acceptance, he had thought that maybe she was not to be as homophobic as he had once thought, not once had she treated Gabriel differently, or even used any offensive language as such at him, even after drinking herself into a stew. Though with Castiel it was different, he could see the hate and the despise in her eyes, he knew that she was  not going to accept this, which was why he began to slowly turn around to leave the room, what was the point in waiting to simply be verbally abused by his drunk mother._ **

**_Though she grabbed his arm before he could leave, “Don’t you just walk away from me like this you little faggot!” she spat, tightening her grip on his arm until Castiel winced slightly from the pain he felt shooting up his right arm. “This is why your father left us you know! It was all because of you! He knew how disgusting you would turn out to be, you are a disgrace to this family! That was what drove your father away; he could see it from the moment you were born. We all could, not just your father and me but your brothers and sister, they all knew it and none of them love you either, no one would, or will. Why do you think no one has ever been remotely interested in you, you don’t even have any friends! Although I don’t know why anyone would want to be around you.” She spoke slowly as though her words were venom seeping into Castiel's open wounds, each word burning into his skin as she kept her grasp on his arm, keeping eye contact, ever the hate._ **

**_Though Castiel knew it was not true, it was not his fault their father left, his brothers and sister had assured him of that many years ago, he was too young for any of this to be his fault. How could a child do something like that, no they all knew the real reason, their mother had changed, the drink had changed her, and none of them liked the effect it had. Her and father would fight constantly, they were not happy, although they would tell their children everything was fine, they knew it was a false sense of security. And he knew that his brothers and sister loved him dearly, again that they had assured him of. These were just his mother’s poisonous words set out to destroy him, and although he knew better than to listen, he could not help it, she had said this so many times that he was almost starting to believe it himself._ **

**_“You were an accident you know!” She said just as Castiel averted his gaze. “We never meant to have you, never wanted you for that fact, you were just a careless accident and that is all you will ever be!”_ **

**_She let go of his arm, her gaze leaving his face as she refocused onto the television as though nothing had happened. Castiel on the other hand was stunned by his mother’s words, though knowing better than to stay for her to think of some new insults, he quickly made his way to his room, taking the stairs two at a time as his vision became blurred from the tears he had been holding in. knowing that would simply be another aspect of his weak being for her to mock._ **

**_As he reached the top of the stairs, he ran into his room, not daring to look at Gabriel who had come out to his door, shutting the door behind himself and locking it as he threw himself onto the bed and under the blankets as though to muffle the sound of his crying._ **

**_It was after that that Castiel had become more recluse, not wanting to burden people with his presence, and so he would spend the majority of his time in his room, reading mostly, though he then turned to writing, he began writing stories of characters, ones that resembled himself in form, though they would be able to have a happy ending, they could have the ending they wanted, the ending they deserved rather than this sorry excuse. He became fearful of what others would think of him, he even tried to change himself, tried to make himself ‘normal’ so that others would buy into this false pretence also. And although his mother was an arse, he just wanted to please her, he wanted to be what she wanted of a son, not himself though a false version in the hopes that she may then see that he was not a mistake in her eyes, though to his dismay she simply dismissed him altogether and would ignore him through most of the day unless she was verbally or eventually, physically abusing him._ **

After a moment of silent contemplating, looking back at his old life and seeing the new life he has made, everything seems right. Castiel stood from his bed and grabbed his laptop from his desk, switching it on and opening Netflix in the search for something to do; he remembered that having been slightly busy the past few weeks, there is a fair bit of Marvels Agents of Shield to catch up on. Though looking at the listings, he sees in fact there are only two new episodes, and so opening them up and pressing play he settles back under the covers and continues to watch his laptop screen depicting the latest adventures of Coulson and his team, especially now that Hydra have been seen to infiltrate Shield, and that everyone believes the Shield agents to be corrupt.

* * *

It was not until around seven o’clock that the warm and comforting smell of apple pie wafted into his room that he got out of bed, following the smell down the stairs and into the kitchen.

Almost simultaneously, his brother Michael walks through the kitchen door and without saying a word grabs two plates, forks and a knife from the side and places them on the table beside the pie. He then sits at one of the six wooden chairs, Castiel following in suit and taking the seat opposite his brother. Michael then cuts two slices of pie, placing them on a plate each and sliding one across the table to where Castiel is sat, alongside a fork and the other pulling in front of himself and taking his own fork.

As they sit there, Castiel watches Michael slicing a piece of the pie off of his plate with the side of his fork and pushing the steaming pie into his mouth. After a moment of chewing and swallowing said pie, Michael is the first to break the silence: “Mmm, Lucifer does make the best pie, you have got to give him that!” he said with a warm smile on his face, looking at Castiel. Lucifer had always been good in the kitchen, making cakes with them all when they were younger, though he would also be the one that would make the meals at home, with their mother coming home late, he and Michael were forced to grow up early and take care of their younger siblings as such, it was not that they minded, they loved them all dearly and would do anything for them, though they knew it was not right, it should be their mother doing this, but not anymore. In this new home Lucifer would mainly make most of the meals whilst Castiel would help him sometimes, Gabriel was not allowed to help, especially not since they moved into the new house and he almost set it on fire trying to make a cheese toastie.

He had successfully made himself a cheese toastie, and was on his way to the living room to enjoy his cheesy snack, though what he failed to do was to turn the toastie maker off and leaving it plugged in and open, especially with the window above open, the small curtains over the windows flew towards the open, heated maker. If Lucifer had not been going into the kitchen at that point, well let’s just say they would have had to be buying more than just a new pair of curtains that day. And so since that day, Gabriel has had to be supervised when using hot items as such in their new kitchen.

Though Castiel enjoyed helping his brother with making the meals, he felt that it gave him a purpose, he could now cook a number of dishes and so if their siblings were ever to leave, for whatever reason or for however long, he was certain that he could take care of his older siblings in the sense of the cooking.

Though taking his subconscious back to the present, he notices Michael is still looking at him with a look of kindness in his eyes and a small smile playing at his lips, and as though he notices Castiel is back to him he begins again. “So, you excited about starting school again tomorrow?” he asks his little brother.

Castiel in return offers his brother a pointed look alongside a sarcastic answer, “Oh yes, I cannot wait, what with all of those people and not knowing anyone, it should be a blast.” He says rather indignantly.

“Oh come on brother, it will not be half as bad as you are thinking, and anyway, you will have Gabriel there with you, so you will know someone, and you know what he is like…” He looks to Castiel who is giving him a slight smirk “…On second thought, yes you may want to try and find a friend, though I am sure you will make plenty. From what I have seen the people seem rather friendly” he says offering a hopeful smile.

Castiel replies by reciprocating the smile, “I will try brother, but you know I am not the best at these kinds of situations.”

“Well, if anything does go wrong or you need to leave, if only for a while then Lucifer or I will be there in a flash, we can even take you and Gabriel to school tomorrow if you wish, rather than you having to take the bus on your first day?” Oh crap, he had forgotten about the fact that they did not live within walking distance as they were with his old school and that he would now have to take the bus, and although Gabriel will be there also, he doubts that he will want to sit on the bus with his little brother every morning and afternoon. Though thinking about it, Castiel decides that maybe sitting by Gabriel would not be the best option seeing as he has a knack for attracting trouble.

“No thank you, I think we would be best taking the bus, better to start off on it than have to start on the second day after everyone has chosen which seat they will want to use throughout the year.” He says honestly.

The two talk for a while longer about school, Michael telling Castiel stories from his time in school and about how Lucifer would be similar to Gabriel in the sense of always pulling pranks on the teachers and other students, laughing at the memories, Castiel reciprocating with a few stories he has experienced and heard about Gabriel.

* * *

After a while of the two talking, their siblings walk in through the door, all taking a seat at the table, Anna sitting beside Castiel, Lucifer sitting beside Michael and Gabriel at the head of the table, jumping into an animated description of the pranks he has set up for tomorrow, hands flying all over the place as he explains to his siblings.

Michael passes Lucifer, Gabriel and Anna a fork each, with which Gabriel snatches the pie from the middle of the table and stuffs a rather large piece into his mouth, with Lucifer leaning over and taking the pie from his hands, placing it just out of reach to Gabriel, though in reach of both Anna and himself.

After many attempts to regain the pie on Gabriel’s behalf, Michael reluctantly pulls said pie into the middle of the table and they all finish it off, ordering a pizza afterwards and sitting down in the living room to enjoy the pizza and watch the latest episode of Doctor Who, Castiel's choice of course, though they have all accepted the show and have gotten pretty intense in it, many debates throughout.

It isn’t until they have finished the pizzas and the rest of the ice cream from the freezer that Castiel decides to call it a night, excusing himself from his family after a number of goodnights, both given and received.

Making his way up the stairs, to then take a towel from the cupboard and walk into the bathroom, locking the door behind him. Once inside, he sets down the towel and turns on his music, loud enough to be heard through the rushing of water from the showerhead. Once teeth have been brushed and all other activities have been completed, he strips down before jumping into the shower.

Turning the nozzle up, Castiel stands underneath the steady stream of hot water as Ramble on starts to play, letting the hot water run through his dark hair and down his back.

 _“Leaves are falling all around, it’s time I was on my way. Thanks to you, I’m much obliged for such a pleasant stay. But now it’s time for me to go. The autumn moon lights my way. For now I smell the rain, and with it pain, and it’s headed my way. Sometimes I grow so tired, but now I’ve got one thing I got to do…”_ he sings, slightly in time and slightly on tune with the music emitting from the bathroom. It is relaxing, both the comfort of the music and the feel of the hot water as it washes away the day, leaving him clean and relaxed.

Reaching to his left, he grabs the bottle of shampoo, and poring a generous amount into his hands, massaging it into  his scalp as he continues to sing, gaining volume as he does so: _“Ramble on, and now’s the time, the time is now, to sing my song. I’m goin’ ‘round the world, I got to find my girl, on my way. I’ve been this way ten years to the day, Ramble On, gotta find the queen of all my dreams. Got no time for spreadin’ roots, the time has come to be gone. And to’ our health we drank a thousand times, it’s time to Ramble On.”_

This continues on until he feels clean and content with himself. Then turning the shower off as King Nothing starts to play, singing along quietly as there is nothing to separate himself from others hearing him singing now.

After drying himself and wrapping the towel around his waist, he slowly makes his way across the hall and into his bedroom, singing along quietly still: _“…And it all crashes down, and you break your crown. And you point your finger, but there’s no one around.”_

Opening the door and walking into his room, he closes the door behind him, quickly discarding the towel and slipping into his marvel pyjama bottoms and a plain white top. He makes his way over to his large bed placed on the far side of his room, beside a large window from which he can view a large part of the street.

As Castiel climbs into bed, pulling the sheets up to his chest to conserve the heat, turning to his right and, turning on the lamp and grabbing the book. Opening it up to the bookmark, he makes his way through reading.

On his way to bed, Gabriel walks into his little brothers room, though seeing him fast asleep, book in his lap and lamp still on, he looks down fondly at him before pulling the covers up to cover his body, he then takes the book and places it on his bedside table, whilst then turning the small lamp off before walking back to the door and closing it as quietly as he can.


	5. Do you remember when we used to dance...

Monday morning finally arrived, after spending the majority of the night fretting over the first day of school, and planning ways in which he could make his way around without attracting attention, how he would answer any questions directed to him, Castiel Novak finally fell asleep at around three am that same morning, offering just over three hours sleep, what a start to the school year.

At 06.15, the sound of an alarm gradually filled his room, Heat of the moment playing softly from the speakers by his bed, the volume increasing in pitch as time went on. As the song finished and two subsequent songs had played through the room, The Wizard, Black Sabbath and Ramble On, Led Zeppelin, Castiel awoke half way through Doctor Doctor, UFO playing _Doctor doctor, please, Oh, the mess I’m in. Doctor doctor, Oh, please oh, the mess I’m in. But you look so angry as I crawled across your floor. She’s got the strength, and I can’t take anymore._

Castiel slowly brought his hands above his head, stretching his sleeping limbs, bringing his hands back down; he rubbed his eyes, removing the sleepy dust, Rheum, from his eyes before looking around his dimly lit room, waiting for the rest of his body to awaken.

As he slowly came out of his daze, Castiel swung his legs slowly over the side of his bed, looking to his left on the small table at his bedside; he looked to the clock, showing it to be only 06.34, only an hour and a half left before it is time to take the bus, ready for the first day of school.

Just thinking about it made his skin crawl, the anxiety returning to his stomach, ‘first day jitters’ is what they all call it, though it feels much more than that, there is a nausea feeling rising in his stomach, beginning to feel a sudden sense of dizziness and feeling his heart pounding in his chest, as he begins thinking over how the day will pan out, all the people. And soon enough he was sat back on his bed, breathing heavily through his mouth.

As he began to focus on the music playing from the other side of his room, Whole Lotta Rosie, AC/DC playing, he simply thought of that, ejecting all other thoughts from his mind, and just focusing on the music. Tapping his foot and his hands to the beat of the moment, they slowly came to a more rhythmic pace, as his hands then began to stop shaking, his breathing slowly evening out.

 Making his way over to the desk on the left of his room to turn the music up slightly, singing softly to himself, it was strange how much music as such could calm him down in any situation. “ _Never had a woman, Never had a woman like you. Doin’ all the things, Doin’ all the things you do. Ain’t no fairy story, Ain’t no skin and bones. But you give it all you got, Weighin’ in at nineteen stone. You’re a whole lotta woman, a whole lotta Rosie…_ ”

As the music carried on, Castiel's singing slowly got louder, moving around his room as he did so, swinging his arms around in a ‘dancing’ motion, singing loudly, if not slightly badly to the songs playing. Enjoying himself as he always does when the music is involved, his worries slipping away for the time being at least.

Stopping his music, he grabbed his phone from the charger on his bedside table, checking the clock once more to see that it is only 06.47, with still the better part of an hour in which to get ready to leave. With this in mind, Castiel walked out of his room, phone in hand still, making his way to the bathroom, towels set up ready. Unlocking his phone, Castiel opened the music section, selecting the playlist named ‘They’re taking the Hobbits to Isengard!’ pressing shuffle and turning the volume up to fill the room.

As Moneytalk, AC/DC starts playing, turning the dial on the shower, waters starts to pour from the nozzle, the sound of running water mixed with the muffled sound of drums, Castiel turns the music a little louder so that it can be heard above the water before placing the phone under a towel as to save it from becoming water damaged. Making his way across the room, he slowly started to peel away his pyjamas, folding them neatly into a small pile and setting them upon the small surface.

Making his way back over to the shower, Castiel pulled back the Marvel shower curtain (his choice of course, seeing as his other siblings all had en-suits, this he had designated as his bathroom, and so decorated it as such), and stepping under the hot water. Standing there for a moment, just feeling the water run down his back, he then turned to the side, grabbing the bottle of shampoo placed strategically within his reach, and pouring a generous amount onto his hand, to then massage into his scalp before retuning his head under the running water, washing away the shampoo, and beginning to sing along once more to his music. _“…The claim is on you, the sights are n me. So what do you do, that’s guaranteed. Hey little girl, you want it all, the furs, the diamonds, the painting on the wall. Come on, come on, love me for the money. Come on, come on, listen to the money talk…”_

As Gabriel wakes up, hearing Castiel in the shower, of which happens to be next to his room, he hears him singing and smiles to himself, knowing that Castiel will be okay. Before turning over and quickly falling back asleep, dreaming about the boy he saw by the candy shop a few weeks back when they were first here in Lawrence. Those eyes, that hair, and the candy of course.

After cleaning himself fully, Castiel turns the nozzle, stopping the flow of water, peeling back the curtain and grabbing a towel from the rack beside him, wrapping it around his waist, and taking a smaller towel with which to dry his hair.

Making his way over to the sink, he looked in the mirror, seeing the dark circles around his eyes, those blue eyes, the amount of mocking and teasing he got over his eyes was unreal. Though this year will be different he told himself, looking back up, forcing a smile, to then look back at his wrist once more, seeing the wings and remembering that everything will be okay.

Taking his toothbrush out of the holder, Castiel brushed his teeth whist teetering around the bathroom, the music still playing from his phone _Livin’ easy, lovin’ free, season ticket on a one way ride. Askin’ nothing, leave me be, takin’ everythin’ in my stride. Don’t need reason, don’t need rhyme, ain’t nothin’ that I’d rather do. Goin’ down, party time, my friends are gonna be there too._ How fitting he thought, considering the day ahead, before spitting out the remainder of the toothpaste in his mouth and belting the next verse for all to hear _“I’m on the highway to hell, on the highway to hell. Highway to hell, I’m on the highway to hell.”_

Walking back into his room, Castiel walked over to his wardrobe placed between his bed and desk, to the wall opposite his door. Opening the door to his wardrobe, he looked firstly for a pair of jeans, taking the black pair from the top of the neatly organised pile, to then place the jeans on the back of the chair behind him. Turning back to his wardrobe, he looked through his tops, looking for the one that he felt like wearing. After looking blankly at his tops, all in colour order and sleeve length, he grabbed the white baseball top with black elbow sleeves and the ‘Walking Dead’ printed on the front above five Redshirt star trek characters, laughing a little to himself looking at it, yes this is the top for today. Placing this top above his jeans on the chair, he turned once again to his wardrobe, grabbing a pair of socks and Batman boxers, placing these on top of the clothes already set on the chair.

Closing his wardrobe door, Castiel turned back to his clothing choice, dropping the towel and pulling his boxers on, the socks came on next, followed by the jeans and then the top. Looking back to his wardrobe door consisting of a large mirror, he studied his reflection, and honestly he liked what he saw, today felt like it might not be as bad as he had thought, the top is awesome, and fits well with the jeans, and even though he may know nothing on what goes with what, he does know that plain colour as such are a good match.

Turning back to his clock, Castiel read 07.24, deciding that he still had just over half an hour before there was the need to leave the house, he made his way over to his bookshelf, grabbing a book, after having had finished reading his previous book: ‘Eeny Meeny’ the night beforehand, he decided it would probably be best to choose another book in order to give him something to read on the bus and in school today. Looking through his shelf, he decided that today he would read something from the ‘H’ section, running his fingers over the tips of the books; he came to a stop at Harry Potter, deciding he had not read them for a while, now would be as good a time as any to reread them all. Grabbing the Chamber of Secrets from the shelf, he made his way over to the middle of the floor, housing a large Batman rug, consisting of the Batman symbol, a black bat surrounded by a yellow oval, with a thinner black frame around it.

Setting himself down on the floor, he crossed his legs, taking the book out of his hands and opening it up to the first page, he was only three pages in before Gabriel came bursting into his room, plopping himself down on the floor opposite his brother, taking the book out of Castiel's hands.

“Gabriel, please give me my book back, I was reading that…” Castiel sighed as Gabriel simply sat there with the book in his hands smiling at his brother mischievously. “Okay, what have you done?” he asked with a slight raise of the eyebrow, eyeing his brother with caution.

“Why on earth would you assume I have done something, when all I want to do is sit here with my dearest brother?” Gabriel said feigning innocence and deception.

Both turning their heads to the door as they heard the loud shout of “Gabriel!” from down the hall, it was either emitting from Michael or Lucifer’s room, Castiel was not sure he wanted to know which brother Gabriel had made a mockery of this time “Where the ever-loving fuck are all of my tops?!” Michael shouted, his voice sounding louder than the first instance, assuming he is making his way up the hall.

Castiel turned back around to look at Gabriel, of whom was wearing a large smile across his face, “Okay, what did you do with Michaels tops?” he asked pointedly, looking to Gabriel for some sort of explanation.

“Well, I may have updated his wardrobe slightly…” Gabriel said turning his attention to his expectant brother standing in the doorway, wearing nothing but a pair of ankle length, blue flannel pyjama bottoms, and carrying a small fold of fabric in his hands.

“Oh, so this is what you call ‘updating’?” he asked sarcastically, holding the piece of fabric up for them both to see, showing it to be a small, small child’s top. Upon further examination, appearing to be in fact simply a small top, with writing upon it; the front of the shirt reading ‘Orgasm Donor’, and the back ‘Ask for your free samples.’

“Oh come on Mikey, have a laugh, they are great tops!” Gabriel said trying and failing to hold back his laughter.

“Yes, I agree they are nice tops actually, and to show my gratitude, I shall wear this top whilst we take you to school today.” Michael spoke calmly, smirking at the horror etched upon Gabriel’s face.

After a moment’s hesitation, Gabriel responded looking firstly at Castiel, to then look to Michael, “But I promised dear Cassie here,” Gabriel spoke motioning towards Castiel who had remained quiet throughout the exchange “-that I would ride the bus with him, you know make sure he is okay…” he said trying with dire urgency to convince his brother otherwise.

Though Michael simply shook his head gently, facing his brother once more with a smile on his face, “Oh no, not today, you can take the bus tomorrow, today I am going to drive you to school, Lucifer and I will even walk through the gates with you, we need to speak to the  principle still.”

“But, but...” Gabriel stammered, trying to think of an excuse as to why his brothers could not take him to school, though after falling short of any possible excuse he could use, he stood up, pushing his way past his smirking brother, and making his way down the hall.

“Oh come on brother, both Lucifer and I will wear one of these lovely tops too! We could all be matching if you wish! How cute would that be.” He shouted as Gabriel made his way, stomping loudly down the hall.

All the two heard next was the slightly muffled shout of “Lucifer, Mikey is being mean to me!” emitting from down the hall, as Gabriel ran to his brother, trying in vain to make him reconsider their attire.

Michael then turned back to Castiel, still smiling, both smiling in fact, “You still want to take the bus Cas?” Michael said, his voice turning softer as he sat himself on the floor opposite Castiel, picking up the Harry Potter book Gabriel had left on his quick escape prior. “It’s okay if you want me and Lucifer to drive you to school, don’t worry, we won’t embarrass _you._ ” He winked at his brother, putting emphasis on the ‘you’.

“No, no it is okay thank you brother, like I said, I will have to get used to the bus, and you know what people are like, they do not like change. Once they pick a seat, that tends to be theirs for the year, best to get one set up on the first day rather than to have to try and fit in tomorrow and risk taking someone’s seat.” He spoke calmly, absentmindedly pressing his thumb to the palm of his hand. A small movement Michael and the others have learnt to be something Castiel does when he is nervous.

Rather than commenting on this, Michael decided instead to simply change the subject, take Castiel's mind off of it. “Okay, well in that case, we are still going to take Gabriel in, we need to make sure all the paperwork has been sent through and that we are set to be your legal guardians. We both have the day off of work today, so we will be here if anything goes wrong, or if you need us. Also, we will buy a film and some food, especially ice cream, and then we can order some pizza tonight.” He asked with a smile, nudging Castiel's shoulder, watching as his little brother slowly stopped his hand movement, looking back up at Michael with a small smile playing on his face.

* * *

Sitting downstairs, Castiel could not help but marvel at this new life built around him, Michael was sat at the end of the table, a piece of toast in one hand, taking slow bites out of it whilst simultaneously reading the paper set out on the table in front of him. To his left was Lucifer, sat with a bowl of Fruit Loops in front of him, though without any milk. Sitting next to Lucifer was Anna, she was sat with her phone in one hand, texting away, it turned out she had made a number of friends already only after the short space of time they had spent within this town. Though she would be at home for the next couple of days, she was not starting university for another week, they had found a good university, one in which she could study English and writing, she had always wanted to be a writer, ever since she was young, it was always something she had enjoyed, she would spend her time writing stories about anything and everything. Opposite Lucifer was Gabriel, of whom was sat with a bowl of fruit loops in front of him, though he had poured chocolate syrup within the bowl.

As Castiel stood in the doorway, he was happy, happy with the way everything had turned out, enjoying the view of how happy his family were, Lucifer throwing individual fruit loops from his bowl at Gabriel as his brother opened his mouth, moving his head to try and catch the cereal in his mouth, their older brother smiling down at his paper, and Anna happy once more, about to live the life she had always wanted. Their mother had never been too fond or supportive of the idea of her writing, always told her that it was not a noble profession, she should try and follow in the footsteps of her brother, go to medical school and become a doctor.

Castiel made his way over to the table, sitting down next to Gabriel, grabbing a piece of toast from the rack in the middle of the table. Looking down to his phone, he saw that it was already 07.53. seven minutes now until he was to leave for the bus, he had worked this out a few days prior, finding the best way in which to make his way to the bus stop and how long  it would take him to get there. He found that walking at a usual pace, it would only take him five minutes to make his way from their house to the bus stop, or if he was walking slowly and reading his book, then it would take around ten minutes to get there.  He then decided that there was the need to be there five minutes before the bus was scheduled to arrive, ensure that he does not arrive at the bus stop too late and therefore miss the bus, which is one thing that would not make a good start to both the day and the school year.

On this day though, Castiel had decided to leave at eight o’clock, to therefore give him ten minutes to read his book, calm his nerves and then arrive five minutes before the bus.

Looking at his phone again, it now read 07.55; _oh crap, only five minutes to go now…_ he thought to himself. Absentmindedly rubbing his hand with his thumb once more, Gabriel noticed this, giving his brother a knowing look as they both looked to one another and back to Castiel.

“Hey Cas, how do you like my shirt?” Lucifer asked him, directing his attention away from his phone and to the shirt, one of the many shirts Gabriel had pushed into Michael’s wardrobe. “I think this may be one of my new favourites, every time Gabe has somewhere important to be, I may just show up wearing it.” He spoke mockingly, aiming his attention to Gabriel whose face had tinted slightly pink.

Castiel laughed at that, his shirt read ‘You know what your problem is? You’re stupid!’ maybe Gabriel reorganising ‘Michael’s wardrobe was not such a bad thing after all.

Looking back down to his phone, he saw that it now read 07.56. _Shit, shit, shit. Four minutes now before I am to leave. Okay Cas, calm._ He thought to himself before excusing himself from the table, walking over to the closet by the door, taking out his tanned trench coat and shoes. Taking these items to the door, he slid down to put on his burgundy high top converses, tying the laces up neatly on the front, making sure the laces are a similar length to the other. Standing up, Castiel then pulled on his trench coat, even though it was not a cold day, this was one thing he liked, consistency. That was the way in which he would go, and those around him knew that, and although they may tease him slightly on it, they would do it in a joking, kind manner.

As he moved from his position by the door, he made his way to the stairs to grab his bag, a bag he had packed the night beforehand ready for the day ahead. Putting the messenger bag over his shoulder, he grabbed his book from the bannister before making his way back to the table to bid his family farewell.

“Okay, I am off now, I will see you later.” Castiel said holding his book closely to his chest with one hand, the other holding tightly onto the strap of his bag.

“Wait, wait, wait!” Anna shouted as she jumped up, grabbing Castiel in a tight bear hug as Gabriel ran over also, closely followed by Michael and Lucifer, all having one large hug. As Castiel finally squirmed out from beneath his siblings, he looked at them all with fondness in his eyes.

“Before you go” Michael said handing Castiel a small box wrapped in electric blue wrapping paper, of which on further inspection appeared to be Tardis paper, making Castiel smile at the extra effort they had put in.

Pulling the paper off of the box, Castiel noticed a rather heavy box within, on further inspection; it was shown to be an IPhone 5. “No, no, you don’t have to do this, I am fine with what I have.” He said trying to push the phone back into his brother’s hands, he could not accept this; this was too much, they had just moved, they did not have the money to do this.

“Well that is where you are wrong little brother, Gabriel here kind of broke your phone a little you see, and this is not a new phone either, and so it was not as expensive. Now take this” he said pushing the phone back into his brothers hands “We have set it up already, your music is on it and your contacts moved over, there is a new sim with the same number, so you don’t need to learn that one again.” He said as Castiel opened the box, revealing a black IPhone, though turning it over to see a Marvel themed protective case around the outside, a dated comic book strip covering the case with the Hulk, Iron Man and Spiderman ripping through it, and at the bottom right hand corner was the Marvel Comics logo.

Castiel smiled at his brothers and sister, and brought them back into a tight embrace, before looking down to his new phone, and seeing that it was not 08.00. _Shit, now I need to go,_ he thought, pushing back from his siblings and putting the box on the table.

“Thank you all for this phone, and I am sorry I cannot thank you fully at the moment, but when I get home tonight, I will make tea or something” he said walking towards the door, his siblings eyes on him still. Waving goodbye, he stepped out of the door, his siblings standing behind him as he walked down the drive, looking back to the door to see Gabriel, Anna, Michael and Lucifer all stood waving at him with large smiles spread across their faces as he waves back, before turning his attention back to the road, taking his headphones out, plugging them into his new phone and seeing what music they had put on it.

He saw that all of his music had been taken from his ITunes and put onto the phone, AC/DC, Metallica, Black Sabbath, Guns N’ Roses, Led Zeppelin and many others. Looking at the playlists, he saw a new one labelled ‘play this one!’ Pressing play as instructed, the first song to play was Heat of the Moment, smiling to himself; he put his phone into his pocket and opened his book to the third page, trying to find the sentence he was on before Gabriel came into his room a good half an hour ago.

As he finds his sentence: ‘At the age of one, Harry had somehow survived a curse rom the greatest dark sorcerer of all time, Lord Voldemort, whose name most witches and wizards still feared to speak.’ Finding his sentence, Castiel smiled to himself as he carried on walking, feeling calmer than he had thought he would today, though he would most definitely have to thank his siblings later.

* * *

Watching as Castiel made his way down the path, they all looked on, Gabriel bringing his arm around his sisters shoulder as Michael and Lucifer shared a brief glance of relief, Castiel seemed much calmer than they were expecting him to be, they hadn’t expected him to have eaten that morning, he never ate breakfast, or for him to be smiling and laughing before heading, happily, out of the door and on his way to school.

“Hey Gabriel” Lucifer said after a moments silence, turning to his brother, “You might want to finish getting ready, we are leaving in half an hour. We should get to the school ten minutes before they start so you will have time to get your timetable ready for the day.” He said smiling greatly as Gabriel just starred at his top, looking up to him, and then back to his top before stomping over dramatically and light-heartedly back to the table to finish eating his breakfast.

* * *

As Castiel came up to the bus stop, he looked down to his phone to see that it was now 08.11, four minutes until the bus gets here he thought. Looking around, he saw that no one else was here yet, maybe that was a good thing he thought.

Turning his attention back to his book, he carried on reading, blissfully unaware of the perky red head making her way to the bus stop, Marvel rucksack on her back, a purple wonder Woman top, black jeans and cherry red Doc Martins.

She came and stood beside Castiel, who had still not yet noticed her presence, though looking up, he jumped slightly, startled by her sudden appearance, taking one headphone out of his ear as he saw her looking down at his book.

“I love this series!” she states happily, grinning at Castiel “Hermione is my favourite, the intelligent one, and damn, she is both beautiful and kick ass!” she said proudly.

Castiel just stood there staring, not sure what to say, he was never good with this kind of situation, or any situation really including other people. He just looked back to his book and then to Charlie sheepishly. Though she must have sensed his anxiety as she calmly extended her hand to him, “Charlie Bradbury” she said, a smile still plastered on her face.

“C-Castiel Novak” he said timidly, taking her hand, and shaking it lightly before looking back at the ground.

“You waiting for the bus to Lawrence High School” she asked him perkily.

“Um, yes, yes, sorry, yes I am.” Castiel spoke quietly, Charlie having to strain herself to hear him speaking. _I haven’t seen this kid here before_ she thinks to herself, _maybe he is new_.

“Are you new here? I mean to this school?” she asked bluntly, no point in beating around the bush really.

“Um, yes, sorry, well yes, both actually, I moved here with my brothers and my sister a few weeks back.” He said a little calmer, gaining more confidence in himself. She seemed nice.

Charlie must have caught onto this new found confidence as her face instantly lit up once more, she turned fully to Castiel, “Well then, let me welcome you to hell.” She said laughing as Castiel caught on with her joke, cracking a small smile.

At that moment, the bus turned the corner and came into view “Well here it is…” Charlie said motioning to the approaching bus.

As the bus came to a halt, Castiel motioned for Charlie to get on first, of which she smiled before stepping onto the bus, Castiel in tow.

As Charlie sat down on the third seat back, Castiel looked around timidly, the bus was quite full, and there weren’t any empty sets, he would have to sit beside someone, one thing he was hoping to avoid. Though before he could think on it any further, he felt something or rather someone grab his arm and drag him down into the seat. Looking beside him, he saw Charlie with her hand on his arm, still smiling to him.

“Hey, you can sit by me.” She said before looking down at her lap and releasing her grip on Castiel's arm “I mean if you want to that is…” she added quickly.

Castiel smiled at this, knowing that he was not the only nervous one made this a lot easier, “I would like that very much thank you.” He said smiling at Charlie as she lifted her head to look at him, returning his smile.

“Good, otherwise this would have been really awkward” she said nudging him in the shoulder as they both started laughing.

“That is very true.” Castiel responded as the two continued to laugh, feeling at ease around Charlie, that she was someone easy to get along with, and that if she wanted of course, maybe they could be good friends.

Charlie smiled, linking her arm to Castiel's and resting her head on Castiel's shoulder, both feeling as comfortable as the other.

* * *

Sitting at the back of the bus with Jo Singer, Dean was in the midst of a heated discussion on Batman and Superman, Jo defending Superman whilst Dean defended Batman “…No, no, no, shut your shit dude. There is no way Superman could beat Batman! Batman is a billionaire, he could get shit done, and the disguise, I mean come on. Oh right he has a pair of glasses, yes you are right, you would never be able to see that Superman looks the same as Clark Kent, just you know, not wearing glasses!” he spoke heatedly, his arms flailing all around the place  as he tried to prove his point.

Though as the bus came to a halt, he looked to the front of the bus to see who was coming on the bus next, if there were any new kids this year. As the first student came on board, he noticed her as Charlie Bradbury, an awesome ass chick, of whom Dean has spoken to on a few occasions; he has known her to be incredibly invested in all things ‘nerdy’. They have had small conversations before, but nothing great, what with Dean being the popular jock, and Charlie being the weird dorky kid.

Though as Charlie sat down, he noticed someone else, a boy he had not seen before, perpetual sex hair, an open trench coat, and under that he could see the outline of five people in red tops, with what looks like the star ship logo in the corner, and the phrase ‘Walking Dead’ labelled above them, Dean laughs a little to himself, understanding that reference.

He then looks back to the boy, noticing is piercing blue eyes, eyes bluer than any he has seen before, they were so beautiful, he thought he could stare into them forever, that was until Castiel was sitting into the seat beside Charlie. _Oh well,_ he thought to himself, _maybe I will see him later and I can strike up a conversation._ Dean thought, turning back to Jo to see her looking at him expectantly.

“What?” he asked, looking genuinely confused.

* * *

After a comfortable twenty four minute bus journey, Castiel had had a number of conversations with Charlie, mainly about Harry Potter, though also about many other Science fiction subjects. Castiel stepped off of the bus, with Charlie right behind him.

Castiel slowly stepped off of the bus, being careful not to fall off and make a complete arse of himself on his first day; there is a whole year ahead for that he thought. Though he then came to the sudden realisation that he did not know anyone at this school, Gabriel was unlikely to be here yet, and so now he needs to find his way around.

He began absentmindedly pressing his thumb into his palm, though to his surprise, a small hand grabbed a hold of his left hand, turning to see who this was, he was surprised to see Charlie behind him. He had half expected that to have been a onetime thing and that now she was back at school, she would not want to know him, though he was pleasantly surprised to say the least that she was stood there with him.

“Well come on,” she said kindly, pulling on Castiel's hand as she led him away from the busses “since you are new, you could definitely do with a guide.” He simply smiled in return, allowing himself to be led through the crowds of people and into the school.

Keeping her hand intertwined with Castiel’s, Charlie showed him through a number of doors, Castiel trying, and failing, to keep track of the path in which they had travelled.

“Okay, here we are.” She said, stopping abruptly in a small hall with a number of doors surrounding them.

“And where exactly would here be, the room of requirement by any chance?” Castiel asked sarcastically, smiling at how comfortable he felt around Charlie already after only knowing her for the past half an hour. This whole friendship thing didn’t seem as hard with her around. Maybe he could make it through this school alive, just maybe…

“Oh, look at you, you sarky son of a Vulcan.” She responded, punching Castiel lightly in the shoulder, feigning hurt as she did so. ”Unfortunately, we are not in the world of Witchcraft and Wizardry” she spoke, sounding almost disappointed as that fact came to life.

She pulled Castiel towards one of the many doors, and from what he saw, although she may have been small, she had quite a force behind her, with the pull she had, almost dragging him off his feet as she then knocked on the door. A muffled “Come in.” could be heard from behind the door, and with that Charlie opened the door, once again pulling Castiel into the room behind her.

“Hello miss. This is Castiel Novak” she said pointing towards Castiel who offered a small, awkward wave before returning his attention and flushed face to the floor. “He is the new student, though I think he said something about a brother arriving soon.” She said as she pushed Castiel forward so that he was in front of the desk, looking straight at what he presumed to be the head mistress.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for sticking with me so far, and for the kudos', please comment any suggestions on how I can improve, thank you! ( :  
> Also, for those of you that may have read this before I deleted it, chapter eight is written, and chapter nine on it's way. I will be uploading each day until all is up, and then I am afraid it will more than likely be once a week or so, depending upon how long it takes to write. But thank you still.


	6. And incidence arose from circumstance...

Looking forward to the woman Charlie was referring to, Castiel noticed that she was a skinny woman; she had harsh features to her face, a thin nose and thin lips, painted red. Her black hair was swept from her face and held on the top of her head. From where he was standing, he could not see her clothing fully, though from what he could see she was wearing a white shirt, the collar buttoned up to the top, with a Victorian broach clipping the front together, this was within a deep purple coat, a ruffled neck and shoulders prominent underneath.

The head was sat behind a large desk. On said desk, there were a number of objects, a laptop, a lot of paper, pens etc. though the item that caught Castiel's attention the most was the small Tardis figure placed strategically to the left of her persons. There were no other items as such on her desk, though Castiel began to think that maybe this head would not be as bad as those of his previous schools, maybe this could be a good year for him, and he has already made one friend, which is enough for him.

He was soon brought out of his trance like state when he heard the woman in front of him speaking: “what have I told you, please call me Missy.” She said as she made her way from behind the desk to stand beside Castiel. Stretching her hand out for a shake, he cautiously pulled his hand out of his pocket; Missy quickly enough grabbed it in her hand, shaking it firmly. Looking back to Charlie for a hint of what to do next, Castiel noticed that she was standing there stifling a laugh, her face slowly reddening.

Unsure of what was happening, he slowly looked back to the woman in front of him, she still had a firm grasp on his hand, a smile plastered upon her face.

It took Castiel much longer than he is proud to admit, to understand the reference and the reason to why both were laughing. He spoke in a small timid voice, unsure of his answer, and not wanting to come off as the weird dorky kid. “Doctor Who?”

“Fantastic!” Missy shouted as she let go of Castiel’s hand, Charlie rushing forward and slinging an arm over his shoulder.

Even though the action was small, Castiel still flinched, ever so slightly, hoping that Charlie really would not notice this, though unluckily for him she did, she looked over to him slightly, though Castiel just smiled, a small, gentle smile, returning his attention back to Missy.

Charlie could not help but think of that small flinch, why he had flinched from the small touch, though knew better than to ask someone something so personal, and so let it drop, also bringing her attention back to Missy.

After a heated discussion on their favourite Doctors and what not, Castiel and Charlie finally left the office, Charlie taking a hold of Castiel’s arm, as they exited the door.

Charlie turned to Castiel as soon as the door closed behind them, stopping abruptly enough to pull Castiel around to a halt.

Castiel gave Charlie a slightly confused look, not understanding why they had just stopped. “Well?” she asked him, a smile spreading across her face, Castiel relaxed against her arm, suddenly his worries dissipating away.

“Well what?” He asked her as she continues to look into his face.

“What do you think of Missy? Is she the best head teacher you have had or what?!” Charlie asked, tugging on his arm as they began to walk again, taking the same route down the hall.

“She seems great, much better than all of those in my previous schools. And the fact she knows about Doctor Who and everything as such. Well that just makes this so much better!” he said as he smiled to himself a little.

They had only left her office a minute or so prior, Castiel was laughing with Charlie, quoting Doctor Who as they walked. Castiel was looking to the ground as they walked, something he had come accustomed to; it wasn’t until he looked up that he saw three shit eating grins on the faces in front of him.

As he looked to them, he noticed that they were in fact Michal, Lucifer and Gabriel. Both Michael and Lucifer were wearing the two tops they had promised Gabriel they would wear this morning, they were stood either side of Gabriel, both holding one of his arms each.

As soon as they saw Castiel, they all dropped their arms and ran forward, lunging at him and tackling him to the ground, Charlie stood there bewildered, wondering who these two were that had her new friend pinned to the floor, a younger boy, a year or so older than herself was stood opposite her.

He smiled and made his way to stand beside her as they both looked to Castiel. “Gabriel.” He said to Charlie after a moments silence, bringing his hand up to her own, taking it and shaking it firmly before pulling away.

Charlie was still a little dumbstruck to who these three were, though from the name of the boy in front of her, she presumed they must have been related. “That is Michael, and that is Lucifer, or Luci as we call him.” Gabriel said referring to his two brothers that were now helping Castiel up from the ground.

“I see you have met our younger brother Cassie over here.” He said trying still to break the silence, from that Charlie came back to her senses, understanding now what was going on.

“Yes, okay, yes. That makes much more sense now I suppose.” Charlie said with a little laugh, she had a beautiful smile on her face, something Gabriel could not help but notice, that smile he liked.

“So, um…” He started, wondering how to portray the funny, charismatic character as to win the heart of those around him. Looking up from the ground, he looked over to Charlie, a smile playing over his face, “How you doin’?” he asked in his worst attempt.

Charlie responded simply by laughing, throwing her arms over Gabriel’s shoulder, “Let’s say I would prefer Carol to Ross…” she said, as Gabriel finally realised what it was she was referring to. He simply responded in kind, laughing alongside her, it was not long before Castiel, Michael and Lucifer looked over to see Charlie.

Both brothers looked down to Castiel with an expectant look, then looking over to Charlie and back to Castiel, Lucifer raising his eyebrow to his little brother. After moment, Castiel realised what it was his brothers were expecting.

Moving over, he grabbed Charlie’s hand, bringing her over to his brothers, letting go of her hand, she then responded by threading her arm through Castiel's. “Charlie these are my older brothers, Lucifer and Michael. And vice versa.” He said referring to all involved.

“Oh Cas, introducing me to the family already, I don’t know if I am ready for this kind of commitment!” she said with a smirk, kissing his cheek as she did so, the two laughing to one another.

The brothers looked between Castiel and Charlie, looking further to Gabriel, they noticed his soft smile, looking to his brother, the other two looked back to Castiel, his arm still linked with Charlie’s, both laughing about who knows what. They were just glad that Castiel had made a friend here, and this quick they had not expected.

“okay Cas, well it was nice to meet your new friend” Lucifer said with a playful smirk, Castiel's face reddening slightly, “though I think we need to speak with your headmaster now, and then we will be parading Gabriel around, make sure as many people can see these lovely tops!” he said as they both grabbed a hold of Gabriel’s arms, dragging him along as he stuck his feet to the ground.

* * *

As Castiel and Charlie made their way from the offices and down the corridor, Charlie stopped them as they came across the reception desk on the corner.

“Morning Claire” Charlie said with a wink, leaning onto the surface separating them, “Can we have Castiel Novak’s time table please” she spoke calmly, Castiel glad that he did not have to ask for anything, maybe this would be a great friendship after all .

“Sure thing sweetie” she, Claire said as she made her way back from the desk, looking through a large cabinet, pulling files around until she pulled three sheets of paper out, and made her way back over to Castiel and Charlie.

She turned to Castiel and handed him the sheets of paper, he spoke a quiet “Thank you” his face burning up, feeling pathetic at how quiet and timid he must have sounded.

Charlie simply responded by bidding Claire farewell, and taking a hold of Castiel's arm once more, pulling him forward.

As they made their way through the hall that was slowly filling with people, they stopped once more aside a large number of lockers. Charlie taking the pieces of paper from Castiel's hand, the first she looked at, looking around until her eyes fell upon the number se was looking for: number twenty seven. Pulling Castiel forward, they made their way to the locker as Charlie handed Castiel the slip of paper with a code on it. “Look at this; you even have a locker next to me. Luck you!” she said laughing to herself again. Castiel looked to the locker; it looked like a normal, grey, long locker with a large black dial on the handle. Looking back to the paper, he tried to remember the code, twisting it to open it.

After three tries, the handle of the door finally swung open to reveal a plain locker, a bar going through it, and a small shelf above. Setting his bag inside, he took a few object out, before taking his bag and putting it back onto his shoulder. Closing his locker door, he looked over to Charlie who was within her locker still, pulling other objects out of her bag and pushing them into her locker. Upon the door, there were a number of posters, including a large one placed in the middle of Hermione Granger, with other Harry Potter, Doctor Who, Star Trek, Star Wars, Sherlock and many others. Just what suited Charlie’s style, something that funnily enough did not surprise Castiel in the slightest.

As Charlie then closed her door, she turned back around to look at Castiel. Uncomfortably though in Castiel’s case, the hall had continually been filling with more and more students, looking around the hall at these people, Castiel uncomfortably shrunk back, his shoulders rising as his gaze fell to the floor. Charlie noticed this, though being the amazing person she knew herself to be, she simply decided to distract Castiel from his worries instead of bringing attention to them.

“Give me your timetable” she said as warmly as she could, holding her hand towards Castiel as he took the timetable sheet from his hands, putting it into her hands as he then continued to refold the other two before putting them gently back into his bag.

“Hey, we have most of our classes together!” She exclaimed excitedly, handing the sheet of paper back to Castiel, there are only three lessons that we don’t have together, though we do have tutor first together, and then the next two lessons together too, but then I will be leaving you after that. She said as took a hold of his arm and guider him down the hall, noticing once more how his eyes automatically went to the floor and his shying away from those approaching him.

Charlie has a separate lesson whilst Castiel has a Law lesson **,** walking to said lesson; he walks with his head down as to not attract attention to himself, hands in his pockets and headphones playing his music loud enough as to drown out the sounds of those around him.

As he is walking, the corridors start to empty, and he begins to panic, where is the room? What if he is late? It isn't long before his breathing has escalated, his hand absentmindedly rubbing his wrist.

Whilst his pace speeds up, he walks past the reception desk with Claire from earlier. Walking up to her nervously, he stands patiently waiting for her to finish on the phone, not wanting to be rude and interrupt her conversation.

It isn't long before she noticed the awkward boy stood beside her, speaking quickly into the phone “hold on one minute” she said as she pressed the phone to her chest. Looking over to Castiel, she smiles before speaking calmly, “hello love, what can I do for you?” She asked.

“Um, I was wondering if you could possibly point me in the direction of the law rooms please.” He asked, lowering his head.

“Of course, just take that door on your left and then third door on your right. Hey, you are going to be late for your lesson. Seeing as you are new, would you like me to write you a note?” She asked kindly, noticing Castiel's shoulders rise as she spoke of his lateness, though the relief in his eyes as the sound of a note.

“Thank you, um yes please, I am sorry. Thank you” he said quickly. 

* * *

As he hurriedly made his way down the hall and to his classroom, he stopped outside the door for a moment, pulling his trench coat up on his shoulders and around his waist, trying to straighten his hair slightly from the mad dash. Castiel took a number of deep breaths in order to steady his own breathing, not to over react on this situation; he checked his pocket for the folded note before turning his attention back to the door in front of him.

Hands shaking slightly, Castiel dug his thumb nail into his middle finger, digging the nail in as hard as he could as to distract himself from the building anxiety, moving his thumb nail back and forth, up his finger.

Not wanting to be any later than he already is, it was either skip this lesson or enter now, and for some reason, he really did not like the idea of starting his new class a day later when everyone is already acquainted and chosen their seats.

So without further ado, he pulls his sleeves over his hands, knocking on the door gently as he opens it, there is a small blonde woman standing in front of the class, her eyes locking with Castiel's immediately, as do the majority of the class, looking to who the new kid could be, some of them he recognises from English earlier, though the majority he has not seen before. Ducking his head and absent-mindedly rubbing his left hand around his right wrist, making a twisting motion as to remove his thoughts from those staring at him.

“I, um, I’m sorry I am l-late” Castiel finally stammers out, his eyes fixed firmly to the ground.

“it is no problem, Castiel yes?” she asks with a warm voice that makes Castiel look up in her direction as he nods slightly before returning his gaze to the floor, wishing he could simply disappear rather than be stood here, in front of everyone, feeling his face heat up.

“Okay, well there is a free seat over there beside Dean, if you would like to sit down; we are just going to be going over the curriculum for the year today.” She said pointing to a table near the back of the room, in the far left, there was a boy sat in the other seat closest to the window, wearing a leather jacket, headphones in his right ear, and talking to whom one can only presume his friend in front of him.

Castiel hesitantly makes his way over to his designated space before he placed his bag under the table, and sat himself in the chair. Pulling his sleeves further over his hands, he looked down to the table, paying little attention to what the woman in front of him was saying, it had something to do with mathematics of course, though what specifically, Castiel did not know. He was a little busy, fixed trying to steady his breathing, his left hand pressing into his right palm as he closed his eyes slightly, taking deep breaths. It takes a while though his breathing does eventually even out.

Looking up to the teacher, he sees that she is still talking, though glancing to many of the students around him, he sees that a vast majority of them are wearing headphones, and so hesitantly puts his left headphone in his ear, pressing play on his phone as the music starts to play, Carry on my Wayward son.

Sitting there, Castiel begins to tap his fingers on the table to the beat of the song, not loud as to draw the attention of others, though to simply give him something to do.

As he carries this on, the boy to the right of him looks over slightly to see his hand tapping down onto the table, as he looks closely to the beats he is playing and the faint music he can hear playing from the vacant headphone, he realises that this kid, the nerdy, awkward kid wearing a trench coat, is listening to Kansas, one of Dean’s favourite bands. He smiles slightly to himself, thinking that maybe this really won’t be that bad sitting beside him, before his friend draws his attention once more.

“So, as I was saying brother, The Dark Knight Rises, one of the best films ever, do you not agree?!” he asks in a deep southern voice, something Castiel cannot help but notice even through trying to pay attention to the music playing through his headphones.

“It is a great film, though I much prefer the Dark Knight out of the two.” Dean says, now this Castiel is interested in, two guys who look like the typical jocks, popular kids of the school talking about superheroes.

“No, you are wrong!” the other boy states almost dramatically. “Rises is the best” to which makes Castiel laugh slightly under his breath, the fact of Talia’s death being the worst in the film, not in an emotional scale no, just the fact that one does not die like that, that is more of a comedy death than anything else. Though Castiel refrains from saying anything, this is his first day and he knows what happens when you disagree with the ‘popular kids’.

Though the response the boy beside him offers startles him a little, both for the detail that has gone into his answer, though also through the fact of how utterly wrong he is. “No, no, no, Talia had the worst death, and no way did Bane make it out of the pit, even if he was born there, a childlike that could not have completed the jump without ease that has killed so many beforehand!” he retaliates. Now this Castiel cannot stay quiet on, it is one thing to believe that the Dark Knight Rises is the best of the trilogy, though it is a complete other to believe the child to have been Bane.

“No, I’m sorry, but no, you are wrong there.” Castiel states shyly, hoping that they had in fact not heard his comment and would simply carry on their conversation and he could simply forget it all happened. Though as it turns out, that is not what is happening.

Dean turns his head to see where that small voice came from, surprised to see the new kid beside him looking so, awkward. Though as he looks up, he recognises him to be the boy from the shop last week, and the boy from the bus this morning with the nerdy top, a book in his hand which happens to now be placed in front of him. Though the one thing Dean is really stuck on are his bright blue eyes, they are one thing that no one could ever dismiss, they were bluer than he had seen before, than he knew to be possible, reminding him faintly of his mother’s eyes, they were a mix between green and blue. Though after a while, he realises that he has just been staring at this kid, maybe he should actually say something now, do not want to freak someone out he thinks. “And why would that be?” he asks raising an eyebrow; genuinely interested in what it is he has to say on the matter.

“Well, to begin with, the Dark Knight Rises is not  _the_ best film, nor is it the best film of the series.” He states bluntly, suddenly feeling slightly confident; this is his field of knowledge.

“Ha! Told you dude.” Dean stated smiling smugly at the boy in front of him, pouting slightly as Dean said so. Turning his attention back to the boy beside him, he smiled warmly as to encourage him to continue.

As Castiel looked up to Dean, he saw his large

 “Though secondly, there is the fact that Bane was not the one to escape the pit as a child, yes he was born in darkness, and moulded by it, he did not see light until he was an adult. Though it was in fact a young Talia who climbed the walls and jumped the cross, at which so many had failed, many had dies, though this was a child, a child of whom climbed from the pit, the only assistance coming in the form of her friend pushing her to the first level, no rope as so many others had. Though Bane was in fact the child’s friend, not the child, he aided her in her escape, though was pulled back by the other inmates seeking revenge, of whom then both tortured and beat him to the point that his face was mutilated and wrapped in bandages, hence the mask. This was to aid the constant damage that was left behind by the attack, the mask served as a pain deterrent, bringing a constant supply of pain relief into his system. This was why when he and Batman had their little personal battle whilst the others were fighting, when Batman hit his face and dislodged the tube, he was in agonizing pain, and was unable to stand correctly.” Once he had finished stating the facts, Castiel looked to both Dean and his friends startled faces, slightly proud of himself being able to explain this without stumbling over every word, and the fact that they could actually hear him.

Dean sat there, looking to Castiel, dumbfound at the amount of in-depth knowledge he has on this field, he had not noticed  beforehand that this boy had insanely deep blue eyes, and how beautiful his smile was, even the small unsure smile he has seen upon his face through this lesson.

Looking closer, Dean noticed the small scars covering Castiel's bottom lip, the way that he would shy away when anyone looked towards him or spoke to him and could not maintain eye contact. Though his eyes would just come back to his lips again, the light pink colour of them, their refined shape, and once again, those scars. The way that the bottom of his lip is slightly unshaped, the pink corresponding with the paleness of his skin, the slight uplift throughout his lower lip, the scaring having been less evident there, though still visible, though only if one were to look closely, and take in each detail.

Though many may think scars to be ugly or unattractive, Dean on the other hand believed them to be beautiful, all scars show a story, he himself has a number of scars, not as visible as the boy’s beside him, though never the less they are there.

Coming back to his senses as he heard Benny’s voice ringing through his head, realizing he had been staring at this boy, he quickly looked back over to his friend.

“And why would you say that?” he asked in a manner that was not threatening, though just slightly intimidating.

Castiel looked to dean, his soft features offering slight reassurance, that and the small smile playing at his lips.

“Well personally, I am partial to the Dark Knight, I believe the portrayal of the Joker by Heath Ledger was much more convincing, and the fact that it should everyone's true intentions, how far people are willing to go…”

“Yes, but!” Benny buts in “it doesn't have bane as a child getting out of the pit, and after so many failed attempts, the only other who gas gotten out of the pit was Wayne. What do you have to say about that then.” He asks smugly.

“Well, yes the child getting out of the pit is fairly impressive though I am afraid you have been misinformed of the child that made their way out, that was in fact Talia who is the child that made it out of the pit. Not Bane, not anyone else, the young Talia, though Bane was the one that helped her, though he was injured by all those in there, hence the mask and the amount of pain and distortion he felt when Batman hit the nozzles to the side. He was not the one that was referred to. Yes he also was born in the pit, and did not see the light of day until he was already a man; he was not the child to escape.” Castiel mentally praised himself for his speech there.

“Well, I still say the Dark Knight Rises is the best!” Benny states matter of factly.

Though Castiel cannot help but think about Dean, the boy beside him, the boy that was staring at him. Why was he staring,  _is there something on my face?_  He thinks to himself, why else would someone be looking at me like that…

Though before he has the chance to think it through any longer, the ringing of the bell brings him out of his thoughts, glad that this lesson is finally over, looking around, he can see a number of people stretching as though they had just woken up while others hurriedly pack their things back into their bags and running out of the door.

Once he had packed his book back into his bag, Castiel pulled it up on his shoulders, putting his other headphone into his ear and making his way around the tables and out of the room, the majority of the class had left already and so there were not that many to walk past, Castiel simply kept his head down as he walked past his classmates and out of the door.

Once he was out of the room, Castiel kept his head down as to avoid the eyes of those surrounding him, that was until he felt an arm attach through his, and someone taking a headphone from his ear, looking to his left, he saw Charlie with a large grin and pulling the headphone to place it in her right ear, looking to her, she simply smiled as they carried on walking to their next class together.

* * *

As dean made his way out of the classroom with Benny, they were still discussing Batman, though Dean stopped in his tracks when he saw the kid in the trench coat walking arm in arm with a beautiful red head, they must be together he thought to himself, well there go my chances.

As that thought crossed his mind, he turned back to Benny who was still talking about Batman, and the two made their way to their next lessons, both different classes, though as Dean came up to his room door, he looked inside to see who else would be in his class this year before choosing his seat.

Stopping in his tracks when he saw both the trench coat and the red head sat together in the back of the room, laughing about who knows what. Though that is not what Dean was curious about, he was far more taken in by the smile that radiated from his lips as the two were talking, it was a beautiful smile, one filled with hope and kindness, though also insecurities.

Dean made his way to the far side of the room, opposite the two, so that he could still see him, though maybe it would not be as obvious that he was staring if they were not as close.

* * *

Waiting for their class to start, Charlie and Castiel sat in the far side of the room together, as they had done so earlier this morning, Charlie was telling Castiel all about Comic Con, the exact story of how she got her tattoo, or what she can remember at least.

Though as they were talking, the both laughing, Castiel could not help but notice the young boy stood by the door, it looked as though he was looking to him, though as soon as he saw him, the other boy moved, he made his way into the room, sitting opposite Castiel.

* * *

The class went on rather slowly, they once again sat there as their teacher spoke on about the curriculum that would be in place that year, though neither Dean nor Castiel could concentrate on that.

Dean would look to the boy in the trench coat, just to see him sat there beside the redhead, his head in his palm as he looked down towards his crotch, Dean could only hope that was his phone he was looking to. Though he could not seem to take his eyes off of him, his dark, messy hair sticking up in all places, looking as though he just needed to go over there and card his fingers through it. Then there was his smile, when he would smile down to his phone, and then show the girl something, they would both ‘giggle’, and if Dean did not say it was the most adorable thing he had seen then he would be wrong.

Though Castiel could not fully concentrate, all he could think to was the boy, Dean, the look he had given him as he was explaining the origins to Bane and Talia earlier, the way his eyes would light up, those green eyes, they were all he could see. looking down to his phone, he had Tumblr open, scrolling through the posts, though every time something green would come along, all he could picture were his eyes and the small smile that would play along his face.

Before they knew it, the bell was ringing once more to signal that it was their lunch break. Everyone hastily made their retreat from the room, though Castiel and Charlie were slower in their packing, as to miss the crowds.

* * *

As Castiel and Charlie made their way out of the door, Charlie grabbed a hold of Castiel's arm, linking the two together as they walk from their desks, making their way to the door on the opposite side of the room.

As they walked, Dean could not help but look towards them both, looking at the young boy that has captivated him, there was not a fault he could see in him, yes he may seem incredibly awkward and silent, but he knew about Batman, he had amazing eyes, plump, interesting lips, his messy unkempt hair, dorky tops and that tanned trench coat. The way his smile could light up a room, something he really wanted to see more of.

* * *

Making their way out of the room, Castiel and Charlie walked through the halls that were surprisingly empty, most already seated, many seated within the cafeteria or upon the large field.

Stopping at their lockers, the two emptied their bags of the books already used, finalising the arrangements for the remainder of the day and any other belongings they may wish to take.

Locking the doors once more, Charlie took Castiel's arm, walking past the cafeteria doors, and making their way to the large double doors leading to the large open area outside the school.

The two walked through the path and took space under the large tree situated to the far corner of the field. Castiel and Charlie both threw their bags to the ground, and sunk down themselves, sitting closely, with their backs pressed against the trunk of the tree.

Once they were both comfortably seated, Castiel took his phone out of his pocket, turning slightly so that he was facing Charlie, she did a similar motion, as they were both looking to one another.

Castiel was the first to break the silence, “So you have really never seen Die Hard?!” he asked, still dumbfound at the fact she had never seen such a masterpiece. Especially with such an amazing actor that was Bruce Willis.

“No, it never really came up” she said, shrugging her shoulders before carrying on with a smile playing at her lips, “You know, no alien invasion, magic, superheroes and what not…” she spoke lightly and playfully. “Though from what we saw in Winchesters lesson, I am starting to believe that I may be missing out there!” she spoke, the words playing to Castiel's attention.

“Too right!” he jumped, Charlie laughing to his enthusiasm of the topic, “That is why you and I are going to watch the remainder of the film now, and I promise you that by the end, if you are not completely in love with this film, I um, I will, I don’t know, I will do something.” He said with such joy in his tone and confidence in what he was saying.

Charlie chuckled at this, though was not one to back down from a challenge. “Okay then, I will watch the film, though if I am not completely obsessed by the ending, then you must… cosplay to school tomorrow!” she spoke, cocking her eyebrow, before speaking one more after the short silence “Make your move reindeer games!”

To quote one of Castiel's favourite Marvel ‘villains’ sealed the deal for Castiel, he took Charlie's hand in his own, shaking it as he opened Netflix, logging into his account, and finding Die Hard they found a rough setting as to where they were with the film before the lesson ended earlier.

Castiel took his headphones that were hanging around his neck, looking to the left and the right before using his hands to judge which side was his left, and which was his right. After finding the sides, he put the right one in his right ear and handed Charlie the left ear which she proceeded to press into her left ear, pressing play on the small screen, they held it in front of themselves and let the film captivate them.

Not long into the film, Charlie was looking through her bag, before moment later pulling food out and placing in front of Castiel and herself, motioning for Castiel to help himself, which he gratefully accepted, taking a small grape, placing it in his mouth as he kept his hand over his mouth, chewing as quietly as he could.

The film continued on through the majority of their lunch break, finishing ten minutes before their lessons were to begin once more.

As Castiel brought his phone back into his pocket, locking the screen and removing the headphones from the ears of both, to thread them back through his top ready for use at a later date. He turned to face Charlie, a large grin on his face, “So, What did you think?!” he asked excitedly.

“Well, you were right with your review, it was awesome!” she said as Castiel smiled happily. “Though you know, a bit of magic would not have gone amiss” she said.

“You are such a nerd!” Castiel laughed as Charlie punched him in the shoulder.

“Just as much as you!” she retaliated happily, to which Castiel could not help but laugh gleefully alongside her.

* * *

The remainder of the day passed quickly after lunch. Castiel and Charlie shared the remainder of their lessons, the majority of lessons that week had been setting the curriculum for the present year. Not that Castiel was complaining, not having to do any work was always good. 

Charlie and Castiel made their way out of the gates, the cool air had already setting in, and Castiel was pulling his coat tighter around his waist. Looking over to Charlie who was doing a similar movement. Bypassing the majority of the students, they finally made it onto the bus, Sitting in the same seats they were using earlier this morning, Castiel turned his head to see that there were not that many on the bus at the moment, though as that thought passed through his head, his eyes connected with another pair of eyes. These were the same deep green eyes he had seen throughout the day, one may even go as far as to class them as a candy apple green, sitting at the back of the bus as he always has, sat with Jo and Benny, Dean sits between the two, talking about their new teachers, and how they are going to end the day.

Looking forward, he noticed the sparkling set of blue eyes anxiously looking around the bus until they settled on his own. He could not pull himself to look away, and it seemed as though blue eyes was in a similar predicament and so the two just continued to look to one another, that was until Dean gave him a small smile.

In response, Castiel's cheeks began to glow a rosy pink, and he quickly averted his gaze back to the front of the bus, though not before Charlie had seen the exchange between the two.

Dean chuckled slightly under his breath, something that did not go unnoticed by his friends.

Benny was the first to comment on this, “What’s so funny?” He asked, looking around the bus for anything that Dean may have found amusing.

“No, it’s nothing.” He said simply, though the large smile on his face told a different story.

Both Benny and Jo looked to one another questioningly, both confused as the other to what it was Dean had found amusing and why he was smiling so brightly, especially on the first day of term.

“So, my place, pizza and a film?!” Dean asked as to change the subject, bringing his attention away from blue eyes and back to his friends. Both of whom were still quizzical as to his previous engagements, though again both dropped the subject. For now.

* * *

After seeing both Castiel and Dean exchanging lasting looks, Charlie reminded herself that this was something she needed to talk about later, though now was not that time.

Looking over to Castiel, she noticed he still had the faintest smile on his lips, “So what are your plans for tonight?” she asked, bringing his attention back to her, that smile growing slightly larger as he saw the smile, the real smile playing upon her own face.

“I believe my brothers said we were going to watch a film and eat pizza.” Castiel said happily, he loved his family dearly, and although sometimes he may not say it, he has always been glad to have people that love him so dearly surrounding him. “What about you?” he asked, thinking to himself that although he may have told Charlie everything about himself that she had asked, he had not asked her that much, he did not know much about her home life.

“Oh you know, probably just read, find something to eat, maybe watch a film.” She said, a slightly pained look forming in her eyes, though that was quickly disguised by a look of fake happiness.

“What’s wrong?” Castiel asked, the concern evident in his voice, “Did something happen at home?” he asked, though mentally scolded himself for coming off to forceful, before reorganising his sentence “Though you do not have to say, I am sorry.” He said with a slightly awkward look on his face.

Looking to the boy beside her, Charlie knew that he thought he had said something wrong, something she was quick to amend. “No, don’t be sorry, you have done nothing wrong. No, it is just well, a little lonely at home.” Charlie said.

Castiel once more noticed the way she said ‘home’ with reluctance, maybe there was something happening to her at her home, possibly something similar to his own situation. “Would you like to come to mine for tea?” Castiel asked, knowing his brothers would not mind, they were all open to newcomers, and he thought that Charlie would in fact fit in pretty well in his family, he was sure they would all love her. “There will only be the five of us, you, pizza and a film. Plus I have a lot of awesome films.” Castiel spoke with glee, smiling towards Charlie whose face literally lit up at the invitation.

“You sure your siblings wouldn’t mind? I don’t want to impose.” She spoke, quieter than usual.

“No, they would all love to meet you! Well you already met Gabriel, Michael and Lucifer briefly, you can meet Anna too if she is home, they are… fun.” Castiel chose his words carefully, thinking about how best it would be to describe his siblings, seeing as they would more than likely all ask a lot of questions.

“Okay.” She said smiling broadly “If you are sure.”

“Of course I am! It will be great.” He said, linking his arm through hers, Charlie resting her head on his shoulder.

Surprisingly enough to Castiel, he is comfortable with this, he has never been one to enjoy the constant company of people, or the touching. He has always preferred to keep himself to himself rather than to be touched. Always shying away from people, if somewhere is crowded, he would simply prefer to not be there, to be home than to be constantly looking over his shoulder, with a constant state of anxiety.

But with Charlie it is different, her company is enjoyable, there is no anxiety to him whatsoever, and feeling as though he can be himself, there is no need to lie or to pretend, and the best thing of all is the fact that Charlie accepts everything about him.

* * *

They continued to talk through the bus ride about anything and everything, though Castiel could not help but constantly have the feeling as though someone is looking at his back, someone is looking at him. Though he tries his best to ignore these feelings, this is all he can think of.

As the bus comes to a halt at their stop, Castiel slowly rises from his seat, looking back, he notices the boy from earlier, Dean, he is looking forward looking at him. Though as soon as Castiel meets his gaze, the boy simply drops his gaze, a blush creeping up his neck.

This made Castiel feel slightly proud of himself, no one ever seemed to notice him, though for some reason, this popular, gorgeous boy did. This boy who had been looking at him throughout the day, though he now also blushed, because of Castiel.

smiling to himself, Castiel forced himself to drop his gaze and make his way off the bus to wait for Charlie whom moments later joined him beside the bus stop.

* * *

After the short walk from the bus stop to his new home, Castiel opened the door, motioning for Charlie to follow. “I’m home!” he shouted through the house, waiting for any response to come through. He knew that all of his brothers should be home, well Gabriel and at least one other, seeing as Gabriel was to have a lift home also from his brothers.

 Closing the door behind her, Castiel took his shoes off, Charlie following in suit, removing her shoes and placing them beside Castiel's to the left as you enter through the door.

“In here!” was the loud shout resonating from the living room, Castiel took a hold of Charlie’s hand, dragging her towards the area in which the voice came from.


	7. One thing led to another we were young...

Walking through the house, Charlie looked around, noticing that all the hung photographs contained only five people; four boys and one girl, _that must be Anna_ Charlie thought, _not bad looking too either_ she thought, laughing a little to herself, trying to keep it in as to not draw the attention, all of different ages, both in comparison and throughout the many separate photographs.

Looking back to the one girl, Charlie noticed that she had a deep red, almost auburn hair colour throughout the photographs, seeming to lighter in some pictures that looked to be taken on summer vacations, though throughout the pictures, the hair varied in length, in what looked like the most recent photograph, going by the comparison between photo Castiel and real Castiel, her hair was past her shoulders, with blue eyes, not anywhere near as blue as Castiel's own eyes, though bluer than others she had seen. Anna had strong cheekbones and a healthy glow to her, lightly pinked lips curving to a beautiful smile in the pictures, especially the small crinkles to her face as she laughed whilst holding to Castiel in the photograph they were walking past now.

Walking further into the house, Charlie began to notice the lack of both a mother and father within all of the photographs, in fact it was only the five to be seen throughout, surely that could not be a coincidence, their parents taking all the photographs, surely there would be some of the seven.

As they continued to walk through the house, Castiel led Charlie into what one could only assume was the kitchen. It wasn’t an overly large kitchen, though it did have everything they would need, including a large wooden table with six chairs set around it, the table set up already, each chair precisely placed in its designated space, a mat in front of each chair, with both plates and bowls set upon it and cutlery placed around each. All on the perfect angle, not a piece out of place, though as they walked past the table, Castiel leant close and nudged the knife closest to him forward a little, realigning it so that it was on the same angle and the same height as all the other cutlery around the table.

Walking forward, Castiel made his way to a cupboard to the left of the fridge, taking out one glass and inspecting it in his hands; he turned to Charlie before speaking “Do you want anything to drink?” He asked kindly as he put the clean glass on the table

“Of course, water is over there.” He motioned towards the taps as he handed the clean glass over to Charlie, before looking through the cupboard, taking out a glass and inspecting that one also, though placing it back before taking another out. After he was happy with the state of the cup, he made his way over to the tap to pour himself a drink.

After letting the water flow into the glass, Castiel made his way back to the cupboard to the right of the fridge. Turning back around to Charlie, she saw there was a large green piece of plastic in his hand which was swiftly placed into his glass, bending the top to a ninety degree angle.

Charlie smiled softly, watching as Castiel took the straw into his mouth, bringing his free hand, which was not grasping the glass, up to cover his mouth as he began to drink from the glass, blocking Charlie’s view of his mouth as he drank.

Charlie chuckled softly, “What’s up with the straws?” Charlie asked in genuine curiosity.

“I um…” Castiel looked down nervously, “I just don’t like the thought of all the germs and bacteria from others drinking is all…” Castiel spoke shyly, fiddling with the hem of his top. “Nor the slurping sound it makes drinking from a glass as such, or bottles for that matter.” He spoke, gesturing to the glass in his hand.

“Okay.” Charlie spoke casually, letting the subject drop seeing as Castiel was seemingly uncomfortable talking through his little habits as such. Walking over, Charlie linked her arm through Castiel's once more before Castiel led the way through the kitchen, the two with their drinks still in their free hands.

“Come on, let’s go.” He said with a smile as he pulled Charlie out of the kitchen, walking through the house, past the pictures of the happy siblings, different holidays, different dates and ages, making their way to the living room to re-join Castiel’s siblings.

Walking to the door leading to the living room, the pair stopped in the doorway, looking in, they saw Castiel's two eldest brothers sitting on the sofa, Gabriel sprawled out on the floor, taking sweets from the bowl beside his relaxed form, and throwing them into the air, to then catch in his mouth - or aiming to at the very least. Looking at his head, the two saw a large assortment of sweets that had missed his mouth and were spread around his head, a vast amount had accumulated above his head, forming an almost halo shape to be seen.

 Still unnoticed by the trio, both Castiel and Charlie stood silently in the door frame, arms linked smiling at the scene transpiring in front of them, for Castiel it was seeing his brothers happy, it had never failed to cheer him up. Though for Charlie, it was seeing a happy family, the brothers calmly interacting, close, friendly, everything she wished she could have in her own home life.

“Dude! I got it in!” Gabriel shouted gleefully - to no one in particular, to anyone that was listening - at his act of finally catching a sweet in his mouth.

“Is that what you said last night?” Charlie asked gleefully from the door, Castiel choking back some of the water he had just sucked through the door as the three in the room jumped at the intrusion of a foreign voice, not knowing there was someone else in the house.

Gabriel spluttered on the floor, choking slightly on the sweet he had previously caught, as Castiel began to laugh hysterically, his brothers face growing redder every second, though not from the choking, that had subsided, rather from the embarrassment.

Though gaining their composure from the initial shock, both Michael and Lucifer turned to see the new comer, Michael smiling broadly seeing Castiel standing beside the red head, tears streaking down his face from laughter, their arms still linked to one another. Lucifer turned back around, laughing to the misfortune of his younger brother who was now hiding his face in shame.

“Oh don’t worry brother, we have all been there.” Lucifer said calmly as Gabriel looked up at him hesitantly, partly confused to where this was heading, though also confused on the same matter before his brother began to continue his speech, all the attention having turned to Gabriel, the room quiet as Michael took his drink into his hands and began to take a sip “Well, not personally, though Mikey here was in the same situation freshmen year, unsure what to do, if you know what I mean.” Lucifer joked as Gabriel began to laugh and Michael spat his drink across the room, his neck and cheeks sporting a crimson glow, similar to that of what Gabriel had earlier.

“Lucifer!” Michael scolded after catching his breath, though his seriousness did not last long as he also began to laugh at the situation at hand “Well, I was young and naive.” He said calmly, “Couldn’t exactly ask dad or mum, not the sort of thing you want to talk about, you two were too young, and I was not going to let Luce ridicule me over this… So I winged it.” He stated, remembering the colossal event that was losing his virginity. “Though I will tell you now, that is not a problem anymore!” He laughed, hi-fiving Lucifer as they both giggled like children, as Gabriel and Castiel looked to one another, a mortified expression painted across their faces, though Charlie followed suit with Michael and Lucifer, laughing both at their confession and the expressions of the younger brothers.

As they all calmed, - Charlie and Castiel had moved fully into the living room now – Michael stood from his seat on the sofa, slowly walking over to the spot in which Castiel and Charlie were situated, smiling warmly at Castiel before he spoke; “Hiya Cassie” he said before turning his attention to the girl on his left, looking at her with a questioning look.

Before anyone had the chance to say anything more, Castiel spoke up; “Michael, this is my friend…” Shit! He thought, friend, was it too soon to say friend, they had only met that day, was there a friendship there, well there must be something there, he thought hesitantly, seeing as she was in his house and did have her arm linked through this, taking this as the sign to go ahead, he took a small breath before continuing his introduction “… Charlie. Charlie, this is my eldest brother Michael.” He stated.

As Castiel said the term friend, Michaels heart leapt, a huge grin spreading across his face, knowing it was and always had been hard for Castiel to make friends, let alone this quickly. He quickly took Charlie’s hand in his own, shaking it firmly with a goofy grin on his face, before turning his head to the sofa where the other two brothers were. “Oi Luci!” He shouted gleefully, “Cassie has a friend over!” Both Lucifer and Gabriel looked up from their place on the floor where Gabriel had pinned Lucifer down for laughing at his misfortune. Though he took his attention away from his brother to smile at his other brother, noticing the red head, he shouted “Charlie!” before carelessly removing one of his hands from grasping his brother and waving to her.

Though his victory was short lived as Lucifer took advantage of his distracted state, the next thing he knew, he was on the floor with Lucifer above him, having flipped their positions and holding his little brother down. His hands moved to Gabriel’s side as he began to tickle him, his brother squirming and laughing uncontrollably, his face reddening and his breaths becoming shorter.

Lucifer looked up from his brother and over to the other side of the room, seeing Michael looking back at him expectantly, his eyes darting over to where Castiel was stood arm in arm with a pretty red head.

“Cassie! You made a friend!” He shouted excitedly, jumping up from the floor, releasing Gabriel, and running over to them, standing in front of Charlie, and to her surprise lifting her into the air – taking note that he is much stronger than he looks – and spinning her around before placing her back onto her two feet beside Castiel, smiling broadly at the two. The shock having subsided and Charlie giggling as Lucifer span her, feeling slightly dizzy once back on stable ground.

Looking to the two in front of him, Lucifer quickly pulled his arms around them, bringing them both close in a crushing bear hug. Michael seeing this jumped forward, putting his arms around them all from behind whilst Gabriel ran from the floor by the sofa where he had been watching the exchange, vaguely shouting “Wait for me!” as he ran forward jumping onto Lucifer’s back in an effort to join the hug, though from the unexpected change in weight upon him, losing his balance, all others following. The five fell onto a large pile on the floor, Michael at the bottom and Gabriel grinning on the top of the other four bodies, though all laughing eventually.

“Well, now that we are all… fully acquainted” Lucifer laughed, “how about we order some food and put a film on.” He smiled as he made his way to the kitchen, Michael in tow as Charlie, Castiel and Gabriel made their way back to the sofa laughing and grinning at one another.

Gabriel throwing himself onto the right hand seat of the sofa, Charlie gracefully sitting down on the left hand, leaving a large space in the middle for Castiel to be sat. Though instead, Castiel simply stood in front of Charlie with a broad smile on his face similar to that one may associate with a Cheshire cat.

“What?” She asked cautiously, looking from Castiel to Gabriel, searching for any kind of reassurance or hints upon his face, though she was met only with a similar, not quite as broad smile.

“You’re in my spot!” Castiel giggled happily as relief flooded through Charlie, realising she had in fact done nothing wrong.

“Okay then… Sheldon!” She laughed as she moved from the left to the middle, Castiel jumping on the sofa causing Charlie to almost fly out of her new spot, all three finding this funnier than one would expect, laughing gleefully.

The trio sat there on the sofa laughing with one another as Charlie punched Castiel lightly in the shoulder for scaring her as such, in response throwing his arms around her and dragging her close to him.

At that point, Lucifer and Michael walked back to the doorway of the living room in which the trio were located, to find them laughing with one another, the biggest smile plastered on Castiel's face, his arm around Charlie and Gabriel smiling at his brother with adoration. After smiling to one another at the scene playing in front of them, Michael and Lucifer made their way over to the spare sofa to the left of the largest.

Noticing the red faces both Castiel and Charlie were sporting, Michael looked to Lucifer before smiling and asking “What happened?” Directing his attention to Gabriel as Charlie fell onto Castiel lap, throwing her legs onto Gabriel’s lap as the two laughed uncontrollably.

“Charlie sat in Castiel’s spot!” Gabriel spoke, a bright smile spread across his face, the two eldest simply smiling to their younger brothers amusement.

* * *

“Well, now that we are all… fully acquainted” Lucifer laughed, “how about we order some food and put a film on.” He smiled as he made his way to the kitchen, Michael in tow.

Making their way into the kitchen, Michael turned to look at Lucifer, the smile still evident upon his face, “So, what shall we get for tea?” he asked, turning to look in the fridge, only to see some vegetables, milk and a few other odd pieces, closing the door he turned his face to look at Lucifer once more.

“Pizza, ice cream, popcorn, sweets and sugar, lots of sugar!” Lucifer shouts excitedly, the two knowing full well they were not going to be eating healthily that day.

“Sounds good to me.” Michael responds, walking back to the table to find his wallet, after a short period of searching through letters and random objects piled up on the table, the small black wallet appears, opening it up, he sees the picture placed in the front, showcasing a happy family before their father left and their mother turned to drink, when none of them had a care in the world.

In the picture, it is a bright summers day in which the seven were enjoying a family barbeque, Castiel was a mere two weeks old, cradled in his brothers arms, staring up at him with utter adoration in his eyes, his hand placed firmly at his brothers chin, stroking it gently as a child would, understanding new textures. To their right stood Lucifer, a similar height to Michael, though a slightly larger child in his arms, this was a young Gabriel with large curious golden eyes, a hand reaching forward and playing with the auburn hair of the young Anael in front of him, a slightly peeved look on her face at her hair being played with. To their left stood their mother and father, their father with his arm snaked around his wife’s waist, her head resting slightly on his shoulder, both looking happy and content, something one would not expect to see before all the problems started; the drinking and the absence.

Smiling towards the happy childhood memory, Michael quickly replaced his wallet into his back pocket, turning to the cupboard behind him in search of a pizza menu.

Opening the cupboard, Michael instantly noticed everything in the cupboard was in the perfect order, or so his brother would say, everything in alphabetical order, not an ingredient out of place, “Castiel’s been at the cupboards again!” He said warmly turning to look at Lucifer, opening the next door, he found the menus had been taped to the door, a number of pockets made, labelled; _Chinese, Indian, Pizza_ and a number of others.

“Hmm, but he looks as though he is doing okay now, I mean just look at him out there, that Charlie, she seems nice though.” He smiled to the thought of his little brother outside the room, hearing his laughter ringing through the house.

“I do like her!” Michael said happily, dragging his brother with him out of the kitchen and towards the living room. Both stopping and looking towards Castiel, listening to the innocent, childish laughter emitting from their content brother, to then walk further into the room, making their way over to the empty sofa and gracefully placing themselves upon it.

* * *

After talking and laughing for a good ten minutes, the laughter calmed down enough for Lucifer to stand and speak up, “Right, we are going to the shops to get some food!” He said loud enough for all to hear.

Gabriel jumped up out of his seat before shouting excitedly “Family shopping trip!” and running out of the room, Michael and Lucifer looking to one another, slight exasperation on their features, though a grin pushing through.

Lucifer turned his attention back to Charlie and Castiel, “Are you two coming as well?” he asked happily making his way off the sofa.

“Well it would be a ‘family shopping trip’ without me now would it?!” Castiel said rising from the sofa, taking a hold of Charlie’s hand and dragging her towards the door, childish laughter radiating from him, causing all others to join in.

Skipping out of the room, Charlie and Castiel quickly joining Gabriel by the front door, pulling their shoes on as Michael and Lucifer slowly made their way into the hall, stopping once more to see all three laughing gleefully, thankful that Castiel has made a friend such as Charlie.

“Come on then, Family shopping trip!” Lucifer shouted, slipping his shoes on as he ran towards Gabriel, putting him over his shoulder as Michael opened the door, and all racing towards the car. Lucifer running to the driver’s side as he threw Gabriel to the grass, Michael riding shotgun and Castiel and Charlie beating Gabriel to the car. Upon getting into the car, Castiel took the far left seat behind Michael, Charlie in the middle seat beside him and finally Gabriel closing the right door behind Lucifer.

* * *

After ten minutes of driving, Lucifer pulled the car into the overly large car park of Hy-Vee, all five scrambling out of the car, spread out in the fresh air in comparison to the compressed space of the vehicle they were traveling in.

Making their way to the entrance, Michael was the one to take a hold of the shopping trolley, wheeling it into the shop alongside Lucifer, Gabriel, Castiel and Charlie running ahead into the shop, though stopping and turning abruptly at the sound of Lucifer’s voice.

“Mike and I will go and do the actual food shopping, you three go pick out whatever it is you want tonight, that includes drinks and snacks.” And at that they all parted their separate ways, Michael and Lucifer walking with one another talking happily as they made their way towards the vegetable aisle.

As the three made their way further into the store, they looked to the aisle numbers and contents hanging from the ceiling, “Bagsie getting the sweets and drinks!” Gabriel shouted hyperactively as he ran from their station and towards aisle seven.

“Okay then, well I take it you and I will be finding the pizza and the ice cream then!” Charlie said happily, taking Castiel’s arm in her own and dragging him through the shop in search of pizza.

“Pizza!” Castiel shouted, dragging Charlie forward towards the freezer doors behind which the pizzas were kept. Opening the door, he removed a peperoni pizza for Gabriel, Mozzarella for Michael, ham and pineapple for Lucifer, mozzarella and pesto for Castiel and finally Charlie taking a meat feast pizza out of the freezer.

“Didn’t think you would be a fan of meat feast!” Castiel said in between laughter, finding his own jokes to be hilarious.

“Well you can always share if you wish.” She retorted with a wink, Castiel responding with an undignified snort, the two laughing.

Looking behind Charlie, Castiel noticed a young boy with green eyes looking at him, one he noticed to be the same boy from earlier that day; Dean Winchester. Looking at the boy, Castiel noticed he did not look away as he saw Castiel catch his eye, though rather gave a rather confident looking smile which Castiel retaliated with an unsure smile of his own, feeling rather self-conscious.

Though moments later he is turning to look at his little brother, Charlie not having seen this exchange grabbed Castiel's arm, dragging him away from the pizza and towards the ice cream, leaving the green eyes boy behind.

* * *

“Pizza!” a kind voice shouted, resonating throughout the shop, loud enough to draw the attention of those around, one of those being a certain Dean Winchester. He looked to his left and saw two people his age, one female, one male, one long hair, one short, and one a red head, the other brunet. 

Looking closely, he notices the piercing blue eyes of the boy, remembering having seen them earlier that day, not knowing why though there was just something about that boy that made him want to know more, want to know everything about him.

Keeping his watch ion the two, he saw them both laughing, Castiel taking a pizza out of the freezer, which one of them must have said something humorous as the innocent laughter filled the store once more, Castiel's smile lighting up his face.

That was until he looked around, catching the staring Dean. The two held the others stare, neither looking away, Dean worrying that Castiel would be freaked out by his staring, though that did not seem to be the case. After staring to the other, Dean gave Castiel a confident smile which was reciprocated with a shy, almost weak smile, though dazzling never the less.

A young boy walked up behind Dean, though he did not notice this, being too wrapped up in Castiel's smile, it isn’t until a voice startles him he notices he is not alone. Looking beside him, he notices his younger brother standing there; he looks to him with a confused look placed upon his face.

“I said…” Sam repeated “Isn’t he one of the new kids at school?” he asked bringing his attention from the two walking away back to his brother.

“Um, yeah, he is.” Dean says flatly, looking back around to notice the back of the boy walking with the girl he believes to be Charlie, arm in arm.

“Cool” Sam said simply “Well, are we going to finish the shopping today?” He asked sarcastically.

“Yeah yeah, c’mon bitch!” Dean said as he began to walk in the opposite direction Castiel had left.

“Jerk” Sam muttered as he followed his brother through the store, walking past Castiel and Charlie once more, finally making their way to the checkout.

After having paid for their groceries, Sam and Dean made their way out to the car, their fathers 1967 Chevrolet Impala, Dean carrying all the bags whilst Sam walks beside him.

“Are you sure I can’t carry a bag Dean?” Sam asked noticing his brother’s heavy arms.

“Nah, I’m fine Sammy” he said before turning around to see the origin his name being shouted.

Turning his body towards the entrance of the door, he saw a young girl running towards him, from what he could see, she had long, curly dark brown hair, flowing to her elbows, a knee length blue dress and white shoes. Though she was running towards them, Sam let out an exasperated sigh, knowing they were not going to be home any time soon.

As soon as she reached Dean, she stood in front of him with a large smile before speaking “Dean!” she said happily, “I didn’t see you at all today” and at that, a pout was playing at her lips which he found to be fairly adorable.

“Well, I’m here now.” He said in lack of anything better to say.

“That you are!” She said happily, moving closer to touch his arm, stroking it slightly. “Do you maybe, I don’t know, go out some time?” she said with a nervous look in her eyes as though afraid of rejection.

Though that look was soon replaced with slight exasperation at the young, impatient voice, bringing them both out of their trance “Dean, mum and dad will be expecting us home now…”

Dean turned to look at his younger brother, “Yes, okay Bitch, get in the car I won’t be a minute.”

“Jerk!” He grumbled as he made his way into the car, sitting within it and turning the radio on.

Back outside the car, Dean looks back to the girl, to Lisa, a smile across his face, “So, about that date…” He said happily, “How does Friday sound? I’ll pick you up a seven?” He spoke as he also made his way into the car, sharing one last smile to Lisa before turning the car on and driving home.

* * *

“Come on, ice cream is this way!” she shouted gleefully, dragging Castiel away from the frozen pizzas and into the next aisle, sure enough containing ice cream.

Though turning around before they went past the corner, Castiel saw that Dean was walking in the opposite direction, the young boy he was talking to moments before muttering something as he walked quickly to catch up with the long strides of the eldest Winchester.

Turning down the aisle, Charlie suddenly stopped as Castiel pointed with his elbow towards the towers of Ben and Jerry’s ice cream, Charlie’s grin widens at that, the wide array of ice cream flavours on offer to choose from.

 Passing the pizzas over to Charlie, Castiel continued to then open the freezer door and remove a number of ice cream tubs from various shelves, ones he and his siblings were sure to enjoy.

Turning around, he showed his options to Charlie which were reached with a beaming grin and a nod of the head, “Ooh, grab a tub of Baked Alaska too!” She motioned towards the ice cream on the third shelf which Castiel happily obliged to take.

Looking in his arms, they both studied the choices that had been made; Baked Alaska, Cookie Dough, Brownie and Peanut Butter and Jelly, both smiled and nodded to one another in confirmation of their choices before walking away from the ice cream in search of Castiel's other siblings.

Turning left from their current aisle, they soon spotted Gabriel wandering with his arms full of various sweets, chocolate and fizzy drinks, as much as his short arms could carry.

“You sure you got enough there?” Charlie asks moving to stand beside Gabriel, something he did not realise they were there, a small squeak emitting from his mouth at the unexpected voice. Both Castiel and Charlie giggling.

The three finally leaving the aisle in search of Michael and Lucifer, their arms full of food as they waddle around earning looks of disgust and surprise from many of the customers around them.

* * *

After a further five minutes of searching, the trio finally locate the two eldest Novak children, though before Gabriel can move forward; Castiel stretches his bent arm, his elbow stopping Gabriel in his tracks as he looks pointedly at his two brothers squabbling like children, Gabriel soon getting the message and stopping to simply watch in amusement.

“…But they’re Gr-r-reat!” Michael stated mimicking the advertisement whilst simultaneously pushing the box of Frosted Flakes at Lucifer.

“Maybe they are, but they’re magically delicious!” Lucifer said pushing the Lucky Charms to Michael who grasped another box of cereal from the shelf behind them.

“That may be true, but are they kid tested and mother approved!” He asked forcing forward the box of Kix cereal.

“Yes, but they don’t go Snap! Crackle! Pop!” Lucifer stated with the box of Rice Crispies in his arms.

“Well, this brings out the tiger in you, in you!” Michael dramatically re-enacted pushing forth the box of Frosted Flakes once more.

After listening to both Michael and Lucifer squabble over the cereal they were going to purchase Castiel finally stepped forward, though was unnoticed by both brothers, continuing their small repertoire.

“How about we just purchase both?” He asked shocking Michael and Lucifer into dropping their cereals to the floor in surprise, Lucifer letting out a shameful squeak, though if anyone were to ask it was in fact a manly squeak.

“Shit Cassie, don’t sneak up on people like that!” Michael said as they both reluctantly picked up the others cereal from the floor and putting it into the trolley behind them.

“He didn’t!” Gabriel stated, arriving at Castiel's defence, his smirk widening as he spoke; “We have all been standing here for the past five minute’s dumbass.”

At that revelation, Michael and Lucifer both sheepishly looked behind Castiel, seeing a smirking Gabriel and a pink faced Charlie holding back their laughter, the two eldest looking at one another again, realising all three had witnessed their previous conversation, though noticing the amount of food each held in their arms, they simply laughed it off.

“Are we feeding the five thousand tonight?” Lucifer asked sarcastically as they moved forward and began emptying their arms into the abandoned trolley.

“It pays to be prepared Luci, never know when they will be coming around.” Gabriel said joyfully, bopping Lucifer on the nose with a red twizzler he had taken from his pocket moments ago, “They can be so unpredictable!” he laughed, taking a bite of the aforementioned sweet and skipping down the aisle, the four others following closely behind, making their way to the checkout.

* * *

After purchasing their goods, the five got back into the door, filling the boot with food, much of it also being placed on laps and on the floor considering the boot was not that big and the amount they had bought.

The journey felt longer than it had on the way to the shop, especially seeing as the three in the back had even less space than beforehand, squabbling with one another light-heartedly until Michael turned on the radio, singing along to ‘Barbie Girl’ with Lucifer, in the end, all five sung together for the ten minute journey.

Once back home, they all helped packing away the food, Castiel taking over on some accounts where objects had been put in the wrong place, or not in the correct order within which they should have been. Turning on the oven, they cooked all five pizzas, plating them up once they came out of the oven, filling different pots with different sauces and dips whilst also filling numerous bowls with the snacks they had bought. Taking all of this into the front room, they set themselves up, Michael and Lucifer on the smaller sofa, Charlie and Castiel on the larger sofa with Charlie lying over Castiel's lap and Gabriel sprawled out on the floor surrounded by bowls of food and different glasses of fizzy drinks.

As the film played on, they continued to watch the two Amazing Spider-Man films, eventually finishing their food with Michael falling asleep half way through the first film, Gabriel on a sugar high throughout, Charlie and Castiel eventually falling asleep on one another two thirds of the way through the second film, both Lucifer and Gabriel smirking at one another before drawing on Michaels face.

As the film came to an end, they all reluctantly woke Castiel and Charlie, considering it was coming up to quarter to eleven and it was a school night, they all though that they needed to go to bed and that Charlie’s family would be missing her.

Charlie waved farewell to Castiel's brothers as Castiel then proceeded to walk Charlie half of the way home, though she did not have far to walk seeing as she only lived a few minutes from Castiel. Saying their farewells, they promised to meet again in the morning ready for school before parting their separate ways, Castiel returning home and falling asleep almost instantly as his head hit the pillow.

As she walked through the door to her house, Charlie shouted “I’m home!” to anyone that may be listening, though to only be met by an deafening slence throughout the house. Looking around, she cannot see anyone within the house, no shoes, bags or coats by the door, not even a car in the driveway.

Making her way into the kitchen, grabbing a glass from the cupboard and pouring a drinkn from the fridge, she saw over the surface of the counter a small white piece of paper reading ‘Charlene’ neatly in the centre.

Setting her glass on the table, Charlie walked over and unfolded the paper, reading the letter; **_Charlene, Jim and I have gone into New York City on business, we should return by the end of the week, early next week at the latest. There is food in the fridge, freezer and cupboards. See you soon, and don’t forget to keep the house clean._**

Scrunching the letter up in her hand, Charlie then proceeded to throw the balled paper forcefully at the closest wall, anger surging through her at the fact her aunt and uncle are never ‘home’.

After that, Charlie retreated to her room, bringing up her laptop, opening up several internet searches, and continuing her previous engagements as Queen of Moondoor before eventually falling asleep at around three o’clock in the morning, early enough to give a good three hours sleep before awakening for school that same morning.


	8. And we would scream together songs unsung...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to those of you reading this!  
> And just to let you know, this is the newest chapter, the one by which was not previously uploaded the first time around.  
> I hope you enjoy reading this as much as I have writing it!   
> Thank you!

On the morning of Tuesday, Castiel awoke bright and early, before his alarm in fact, having woken an hour before needed, 05.30 to be precise, though without the need to sleep again, having slept better this past night than in the five years leading up to this moment.

Swinging his legs out of the bed, he jumped up, pressing play on his laptop to project his music softly through the room, playing Ludovico Einaudi, the first song playing being that of ‘Nuvole Bianche’, his favourite from the album. Through playing this, this early in the morning, it was less likely to wake anyone than if AC/DC were to be blasting through his room. Though classical music has never been something Castiel himself would choose to listen to, this has proved to be useful; something he can listen to and relax upon, the pianists work fits any situation.

As the music resonated throughout the room, he made his way to the kitchen, making a hot chocolate in his favourite Marvel mug, bringing it back to his room; he took a straw from the cup beside his bedside and inserted it into the drink. Placing the cup on the floor, he took the book from his desk and settled onto the beanbag on the floor of his room. Making himself comfortable, he brought his knees up, placing his book upon his legs and bringing his mug to his chest.

Forty five minutes had passed, having finished both his drink and the remainder of his book, he set it back into its rightful place on the bookshelf, being sure to align each within their correct order before his alarm fang out, signalising it as time to get ready for the day ahead.

Having turned the alarm off, he returned to his bookshelf, looking to each and every book for the next to read, finally settling on ‘Pop goes the Weasel’, he took the book out of its place before placing it upon his desk ready to read once fully prepared for the day ahead.

* * *

After having had showered and brushed his teeth, Castiel made his way back into his room, removing the towel from his waist and instead replacing it with a fresh pair of plain boxers from the draw.

Making his way over to his wardrobe, he took out a clean pair of jeans from the bottom row before moving higher up and removing the seventh top in, depicting the many Batman symbols of the film industry. Pulling on the jeans and then the top, he then proceeded to put a pair of socks on his feet, these red with the Flash upon the legs.

Making his way out of his room, he stopped to pick up his bag and book, looking in the mirror as a once over, trying to tame his wild hair though to no avail, opting to therefore simply pull his hands through it to keep it as flat as he could manage.

Once downstairs, he took his phone out of his pocket to check the time - smiling to himself at the fact of his siblings purchasing such a device for him – to find that it was only in fact 06.45, meaning he still had a good hour before leaving the house. With this in mind, he made his way into the living room, discarding his belongings by the door and unceremoniously throwing himself down onto the sofa. With the remote close by, he turned the television on, only to see a late episode of Doctor Who was playing.

Pulling his attention forth, he sat with his legs crossed on the sofa, his elbows placed upon his knees and his hands clasped together in anticipation for the program about to start.

As the episode continued on, his brothers began to decline the stairs, first Michael, making his way into the kitchen to make hot drinks for both Lucifer and himself. Not long after, Lucifer made his way downstairs, greeted by a hot mug of coffee on the small table in the living room, seeing both Castiel and Michael sitting on the sofa emerged in the happenings of the television in front of them. Without a word, he took his mug and his space on the sofa, sitting in-between Michael and Castiel.

As the programme came to an end, Gabriel made his way down the stairs, making a large bowl of cereal and sitting himself into the living room on the opposite sofa.

* * *

As eight o’clock came around, Castiel was standing by the door, his bag on his shoulders, trench coat on his back, shoes on his feet and flask in his hands. “Gabriel, hurry up!” He shouted, only to be met by an eerily silence from the house, broken by the loud thudding of heavy cladded feet running through the house. “Gabriel!” He tried again, though this time was met by a response.

“Yes, I heard you, give me a minute! I can’t find my bag.” He shouted in response, the sound of the footsteps quickening in pace.

“Do you mean this one by my feet?!” Castiel shouted as he picked the bag in question up off the floor to see Gabriel running down the stairs to meet him.

“Why didn’t you tell me it was here?” He asked as he took the bag out of his hands and slung it over his shoulder, opening the door to have Castiel following closely behind, a look of bemusement evident across his face.

“I just did, did I not…” Castiel spoke, oblivious to the sarcasm in Gabriel’s tone, though did not pursue the matter further on the basis of hearing his name, or a version of his name at least being called from across the street. Both Castiel and Gabriel looking up saw a bubbly red head making her way across the street to the two brothers.

“Charlie!” Gabriel shouted in response as she came to a halt in front of them

“You taking the bus today then Gabe?”

“That’s right, princess.” He replied

“No, Queen actually!” She stated matter of factly before continuing “The people of Moondoor would not survive without their queen!” proudly she spoke, making both Castiel and Gabriel laugh as the trio carried on their short journey to the bus stop.

They waited for the bus, talking explicitly to one another, though it was mainly Charlie informing both brothers on the developments of her Kingdom, and alongside Castiel, they both explained the concept of LARP'ing to the ill-informed Gabriel.

Once upon the bus, Gabriel moved further back than Castiel and Charlie who sat in the same seats as the previous day. Looking back at Gabriel, Castiel noticed he was speaking to a young girl, one of whom looked to be in Gabriel’s year, shoulder length brown, bouncy hair, plump lips painted red, dark skin and fashioned in a low cut red shirt tucked into a black pencil skirt. From what he could see, the two were getting along just fine; Gabriel had a shy smile playing across his face, looking longingly and devotedly interested in what it was she was saying, he looked happy.

The bus journey was bearable, and once in school, both Castiel and Charlie shared their first three periods with one another, and so naturally sat beside the other, though no work was completed, merely a lesson spent stating the curriculum that would be studied that year.

As Charlie and Castiel entered the room, they were among the first in, and greeted by a pretty woman with long blonde hair and crystal blue eyes. She smiled widely as the two entered the room, directing her attention to Charlie, not noticing Castiel stood behind her.

“Charlie!” She commented kindly, a gentle, authentic smile over her face before she continued “You weren’t in Homeroom yesterday?” She asked, though it was more of a statement, though not an unkind one at that.

“No, sorry” Charlie said returning her kind smile before stepping to the side and directing her attention to the boy standing awkwardly behind her, “I was showing Cas around, getting everything sorted for him.” She said.

It was only then that the woman noticed the young brown haired boy awkwardly standing by, “Castiel Novak?” She asked, stretching her hand towards him, shaking his hand softly. ”I’m Mrs. Winchester; it is lovely to finally meet you.” She said with a small laugh to herself, her face lighting, making Castiel feel much more comfortable in his surroundings, the squareness of his shoulders falling back, his defences collapsing.

 The first official lesson of the day for both Castiel and Charlie was that of Mathematics, one of Castiel's favourite subjects, though one thing he failed to notice was a certain green eyes boy sitting two rows behind him captivated throughout the majority of the lesson on the way he smiled, or the way his eyes would crinkle at the corners whilst laughing, or the tilt of his head when he did not understand something that was said.

Once their break finally came around, Castiel and Charlie once more sat below the large oak tree, discussing everything and anything, though part of said conversation was dominated by a certain boy Castiel had taken a shining to.

As their break came to an end, Castiel and Charlie made their way through the two large doors, entering the school building. Though this lesson they did not share, After having spent the first two periods in lessons together and their break sitting on the grass, resting beside the same oak tree as the day before, Castiel and Charlie eventually made their way back inside  as the bell to signal break coming to an end rang through the halls.

The next lesson though, they did not share, Charlie had Home Economics whilst Castiel had Latin though this time Charlie walked Castiel to his room, considering her room was opposite, this worked well for the two, saying their farewells at the door, Castiel made his way into the room which was partially empty, taking up a seat in the far left of the room.

It was not until class had already started that the door was swung open and in flaunted the one and only Dean Winchester “Sorry I’m late sir, got lost; you know what with it being the first week and what not.” He said flashing his brightest smile.

“Very clever, boy!” the man said, “Well, seeing as y’ur late to the lesson, there is a spare seat in the back, go and sit your backside there and shut your gob.” He said in what one could only perceive as a friendly tone, as though the two were friends, or at the least acquaintances.

“Oh Bobby, you always say the nicest things!” Dean spoke sarcastically as he slowly made his way to the back of the room, to the spare seat beside a boy with his face turned out the window.

“Idgit!” he mumbled as he turned back to the board “As I was saying, none of that ‘Mr. Singer’ or ‘Sir’ crap, you will address me by my name, by Bobby, I am not some fifty year old asshat.” He spoke in a gruff tone, though seemed to be a kind hearted man under the tough exterior. At that, the majority of the class let out loud snickers, responding with a simple “Yes, _Bobby!_ ” making sure to put emphasis on his name.

Thirty minutes into the class, Castiel was busy taking notes, not looking up from his book to notice the boy beside him had been looking intently at him throughout the lesson so far. Watching the way he would hold his pen in-between his teeth whilst listening to their teacher talk, to then bite his scarred bottom lip whilst writing or thinking. The way he would nervously twitch his hand on the table, or to tap out the rhythm of a song, many of which he was surprised this boy knew.

Keeping his mind on his work, Castiel did not snap out of it until Bobby’s voice rang through the room “Right, listen up ya Idgit’s, the person you are sat beside will be your partner for the year. You will work with them on projects, activities and anything else.” At that, Castiel looked beside him to see who his new partner would be, only to be met by a dazzling pair of green eyes trained on his own head.

At the sight of this boy now looking at him, Dean was unsure of how to proceed; to look away and make things awkward for the entire year they are to spend together, or to play it off cool. “Hi” he said simply, looking to Castiel with his award winning smile plastered across his face.

“Um, h-hello.” Castiel replied a little awkwardly, pressing his thumb into the palm of his hand in an attempt to calm himself, even though he should not feel like this simply talking to someone.

“Hi” Dean smiled, before realising he had already said that, that the two were staring at one another, though it was not with an awkward silence, more of a comfortable silence, as though neither felt the need to speak, that they could read everything they wanted to know from the others eyes alone.

Though it was once again Dean who broke this silence, “I’m Dean, don’t think I introduced myself yesterday…” he said, though decided to expand after seeing the blank look on Castiel’s face “Batman.” He said simply as though that was enough, and it was.

“Sorry, yes sorry, Um, I am C-Cas, um C-Castiel Novak.” He stuttered awkwardly, mentally scolding himself for being as such.

They both relapsed into the silence, with only the small chatter of those around them filling the class, though this did not distract either party, they simply stared longingly at the other, not speaking or moving, just lost in the other’s eyes.

Though once again, it was Dean breaking the silence, asking a simple question, “You new here?”

“Um, yes I am.” He replied.

Dean nodded curtly at the answer, though wanting to know more about this boy, and so continued his questioning, “Just the school or the town as well?” He asked, genuinely interested, something that surprised Castiel, no one was ever interested in him, he was simply the awkward quiet kid that just stood in the background rather than in the forefront, so this was all new for him.

“Both.” he replied bluntly before expanding from the expectant look Dean was giving him “We moved here this summer, and so seeing as this was the closest school, they thought it would be best.”

“We?” Dean asked wanting to keep the conversation alive for as long as possible.

Looking up, Castiel was still bewildered as to why this boy wanted to know so much about him, though from the encouraging smile he was shown, he smiled in response before continuing. “My brothers and I, though Anna came with us also, she has gone off to college now, so it is just us.” Talking about his siblings, the memory of their departure, it all made Castiel smile brightly, realising how different this was from last year.

“Anna?” He asked, curious as to this boy’s background, the fact that he did not mention his mother or father, any aunts or uncles, just the siblings.

“Yes, my sister.” He replied, unsure of where this was to be going.

“So, you moved here with your brothers and your sister?” he asked as he put his pen back on the table, directing his full and utmost attention towards Castiel.

“Yes, Michael and Lucifer got jobs and used the money we had all saved to purchase a house, Anna then went off to college and Gabriel and I came here to finish our education.” He said as though it were the most natural thing in the world, to simply pack up, change address to live with ones siblings.

“So, you don’t live with your parents any more then?” He asked, though immediately regretted it as he saw Castiel's reaction being that of pressing his nails harder into his palm, cracking his fingers and his face becoming a blank canvas. “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have asked that, you don’t have to answer that, sorry.” Dean responded almost immediately, his right hand coming to rest on the back of his neck, rubbing it in a slightly awkward manner.

“No, I’m sorry, it is okay.” Castiel replied as he took a breath, moving his hands under the table, yet keeping his thumb pressed into the palm of his hand. “My father left shortly after I was born, and my mother, well she is not the best person one would choose to willingly live beside. My siblings saw that, and well, here we are, so, to answer your previous question, no we do not live with our parents any more.”

Noticing how Castiel spoke of his parents, Dean decide it would be best not to ask any questions furthermore on the matter, though to simply let that finish.

From there, the two did not speak again throughout the class, though Castiel would catch Dean looking at him, and Dean would catch Castiel looking at him, neither would say anything on the matter, rather they would either avert their gaze, smile kindly to the other, or just look at one another deeply until they were brought out of their trance like state.

By the time the lesson had finished, neither boy had heard a word Bobby was saying, though rather they had simply marvelled on the others beauty, though as both made their way out of the room, Castiel immediately spotted Charlie standing by the door waiting for him.

Making his way swiftly out of the room, he walked up beside Charlie before shouting “Allons-y” and jumping into the side of her, giving her a fright, though once she realised it was Castiel, the two began laughing. Dean standing at the door, smiled to himself thinking how adorable this kid was, he seems so kind and reserved, yet playful and happy, almost like a kitten. And when he smiled, it could light up a room.

Though before he could think to say anything, there was a preppy girl by his side calling his name, bringing him out of his moment, though this time, this had not gone unnoticed by Charlie who had seen exactly the way Dean Winchester was looking at Castiel.

* * *

The next lesson was before lunch, though this again Castiel and Charlie did not share, Charlie had physical education whilst Castiel once again had Law, to be sitting beside Dean Winchester again. Once more, Charlie walked Castiel to his classroom, telling him she would meet him below the tree after this lesson.

After saying their farewells, Castiel made his way into the room, seeing that Dean was already sat at their table though talking to the boy, Benny, again, not noticing Castiel's approach, he kept his head down as he walked and swiftly made his way to his seat, not attracting any attention.

As he sat down, Dean continued his conversation as Castiel took his book out and began to read, awaiting the teacher and the rest of the class’ arrival.

“Yeah, Lisa saw me coming out of the shop yesterday with Sammy, and cornered me, so I guess I got a date tomorrow!” He said trying to act nonchalant, though anyone could tell there was slight excitement in his voice, something Castiel did not fail to notice, feeling a tight pinch in his stomach, though unsure why; he had no possession over this boy, barely knew him, how could he dictate his actions or have any influence in them there forth.

With this thought in mind, Castiel sunk slowly in the chair, his shoulders falling though his attention still to his book. Having zoned out of the conversation Dean was having, not wanting to hear what it was he was going to say about this girl he liked.

Though he soon came out of his zone when he heard his name; “Cas, Hey!” Dean had said with a bright smile, turning his body so that he was facing Castiel now.

 The sight of this boy he barely knew interacting with him and acting friendly all around, though especially his bright, warm smile was enough to bring a fluttering sensation to his stomach. Apart from Charlie, no one at this school had even bothered to get to know him. It would have been easy enough for Dean to simply ignore his presence as most often do, though quite to the contraire. He is engaging at his own free will, and this is enough to leave Castiel smiling like an idiot at Dean who is just staring back at him.

Though recalling that Dean had in fact spoken to him, he quickly ducked his head, pressing his thumbs into the palm of his hands before replying. “H-hello Dean.” He stumbled.

Looking down, Dean saw the book still open in Castiel's lap, his elbow holding the page in place, “What’cha reading?” Dean asked happily, looking to Castiel with a glint in his eye. Something that made Castiel want to smile back, though remembering that this uplifting mood was brought on by this girl, Lisa, and not him made his insides feel as though they were shrinking ever so slightly. Especially  the fact that Dean was straight, and even if by some miracle he had an inkling for guys, there is no way that Castiel of all people would live up to his standards.

Bringing that feeling to the surface, he plastered on a fake smile in the hopes that Dean would not notice, and simply believe it to be real. Though if a romantic relationship between the two is out of the question, there is nothing to stop a friendship forming.

 Looking up, Castiel saw that Dean was still looking happily at him, not past him, but right at him, at this, he brought the bookmark from the back of the book and placed it to his current position before saying “Pop Goes the Weasel.” And closing his book in his lap.

The bookmark was a small cardboard one with metallic pieces wither side to connect through the paper, it was purple in colour, with the Batman symbol on one side, and the other depicted the scene of two characters in a fighting stance; Batman and Robin.

Dean noticed this bookmark, watching Castiel's nimble fingers work before commenting on this particular bookmark at hand; “Thought you didn’t like Batman…” He said.

“I did not state my distaste of the character, simply that I believed the rendition of that film in particular to be below par, I still firmly stick with my beliefs that he is one of the best DC characters, I both enjoy and admire Batman for all his worth.” Castiel stated simply, keeping his eyes low, though surprising himself at his new found boldness, though disappointed that it is unlikely Dean would respond; jealousy really is a fickle fiend.

Dean looked to Castiel, stumped for a moment before regaining his composure and continuing their conversation “Well then, who would be your favourite superhero?” he asked happily, striving to keep the conversation alive.

Castiel looked up, slightly dazed by this sudden interest in him, though as Dean cleared his throat Castiel looked back down to his lap, his face heating dramatically at the realisation he had been staring at Dean again. It was the thought that this boy is going to think he is weird; whatever friendship could have formed between the two was sure to have been destroyed by now.

Lifting his head once more, Castiel’s cheeks were still tinted pink, Dean was still watching him, looking at his cheeks and his unsure eyes, he found this oddly endearing. They sat in silence for a moment before Castiel spoke up, it was in his quiet voice, barely audible though still in there; “overall, or specifically DC?” He asked, looking at Dean through his eyelashes.

“DC.” Dean stated ever so simply, not once taking his eyes off of this boy for fear he may lose the sight of those beautiful blue eyes and pink cheeks, the smile still evident across Dean’s features, broadening ever so slightly.

“Well, I think DC and wise, it may be out of Batman and Wonder Woman. Batman is generally badass, I do not see why people do not believe him to be a valid superhero, simply because he was not born on Kripton, nor can he shoot lasers out of his eyes. Yet.” Castiel said, considering his argument fully.

“That is a valid point, you wanna know what else is… The fact that Batman is awesome!” Dean laughed happily before leaning in close to  Castiel, he felt his heartbeat speed up, trying to control both his beating heart and his rhythmic breathing as to calm himself. He could smell Dean from how close they were; old leather, freshly cut grass and… sweet cherry pie! That what what he would smell when Dean was close, all seemed fitting for his personal, he took a moment to wonder if this is what Amortentia would smell like to him, if this is what he would smell, Dean.

Though before he could take this thought any further, he head a deep voice speaking, much lower than Dean’s own voice, though all the characteristics were there, “I'm Batman!” He said, Castiel looking slightly to his right saw Dean sat thee with a deadly serious expression painted on his face before he began laughing like a delirious child once again.

Realising the spoken phrase to be Deans imitation of Batman, Castiel began to laugh alongside Dean, basking in the beautiful sound his laughter made.

As the class continued, Castiel and Dean spoke to one another continuously, listening to important parts, taking the necessary notes. Though every other moment in between was spent by the two talking. The majority of their conversation consisted of talking about superheroes, having been ‘shushed’ a few times as Dean would laugh just a little too loud, attracting the attention of those around him away from their teacher.

* * *

Walking out of his seat, Castiel was feeling rather relaxed, calm even. The feeling of having been able to converse almost flawlessly was really something he hoped he could keep up, especially with this boy in particular, the smile upon his face would just not leave.

Though walking further away from the comfort of his seat and closer to the door, the swarms of pupils rushing through the halls, his pace slowing down as he came closer and closer to the sea of students. He could feel his mouth going dry; his heartbeat rising as he quickly ducked his head, pulled the strap of his bag further up his arm, gripping tightly as though this was the only thing keeping him on this earth.

Making his way through the door, Castiel walked swiftly through the crowd, ducking behind each student he passed, muttering apologies as he bumped into a few.

Once outside, Castiel made his way under the large Oak tree, sitting on the floor and waiting for Charlie to arrive. Taking his book out, he began to read as he waited, bringing his knees up to his chest, his headphones in his ears, blocking out the world.

With this at hand, he did not notice neither Dean nor his group of friends making their way opposite him. Dean watching him with deadly precision as he continues to look relaxed and peaceful, more so than he had seen him over the two days he had seen Castiel Novak.

It was not long until Castiel was joined by Charlie, though rather than talking throughout the lunch period, instead she merely fell to the ground, Castiel pushing his legs out as Charlie placed her head in his lap, taking one of his headphones and bringing her own book out.

They continued on like that throughout the entirety of their lunch break, occasionally sharing points from their books, and to eat Castiel’s food.

* * *

With the end of the school day in sight, Castiel and Charlie were among the first to board the bus, taking their seat towards the front as Gabriel smiled towards both, making his way onto the bus behind the girl from this morning. Both sat by one another, seemingly carrying on their conversation happily.

Dean on the other hand was one of the last to board the bus, smiling broadly when he saw Castiel, Castiel happily returning the gesture with a genuine, bright smile of his own. Charlie was stunned at this, she had seen how awkward Castiel was around people, let alone the popular, not to mention intimidating Dean Winchester. “What was that?” She finally asked the still smiling Castiel.

“I think I made a friend.” He responded simply, looking to Charlie with his bright eyes full of hope and joy. They spent the remainder of the journey home with one headphone in, sharing their music and reading their books, Charlie sat with her back leaning against Castiel’s shoulder, both happy and content with this.

That evening, Charlie once again entered the Novak household and was greeted by a warm embrace from Castiel’s siblings and the promise of food.

They all ate, laughed and watched films once again before Charlie returned ‘home’ to an empty house. Taking out a glass and filling it with water, she retreated back to her room, setting the glass on her table and taking out her book. Reading said book before she finally fell asleep within the early hours of the morning, to be awoken only three hours later by her alarm clock ringing loudly.


	9. It was the Heat of the Moment...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here you go.  
> I know this might not be the best, and it took longer than I thought to update, but I enjoyed writing it.  
> Also, I am sorry on the basis of law if what I have written differs drastically from that of the American Law, though this I based through my knowledge of the English law system.

As the days went past, Friday had finally come around, the end of the first week of school, only seven now to go until the half term was to begin.

Throughout the past week, neither Charlie nor Castiel had spent a day apart, traveling on the bus together both to and from the school, sitting in the back of the room together in the classes they share. Charlie had even spent every evening in the Novak household, eating their tea together, which included all of Castiel's brothers too, to then complete their homework before watching television, playing games or watching films. This is all before Charlie would eventually have to return ‘home’ to an empty house, though she did not mind as much now, what with spending her free time with Castiel. Sure, she missed them, but who wouldn’t. The house was unusually quiet, even though they did not interact with her that much, it was just nice to have the background, and the safety that came with family and company.

* * *

The day started off as usual; Charlie and Castiel took the bus to school together, sharing their headphones still as they both read their books, blocking out the outside world, and being transported into a parallel universe of fiction. To then also spend their first two periods together before walking outside into the cooling autumn air, taking camp under ‘their’ oak tree, sitting in a comfortable silence, they both continued their reading, resuming their previous states of Castiel sitting with his back against the tree trunk and Charlie resting her head in his lap.

Heading back into the school building, Castiel and Charlie once again went their separate ways, Charlie walking to her computing class whilst Castiel walked to his Law class.

Sat down in the seat, it was not long until the rest of the class began piling in to the room, laughter and chatter filling the air, though Castiel instead kept one headphone in his left ear, turning up the volume, so that was what he could hear over the numerous conversations transpiring around him, and turning back to his phone. He had his phone open to the previously downloaded fictions, reading to read if the situation were to present itself as it was doing at that point in time.

Smiling brightly as he read, Castiel looked up from his phone seeing a certain green eyed boy making his way across the room, talking animatedly with his friend Castiel has assumed to be ‘Benny’. There was a large grin on his face as he continued to talk, slowly bring able to hear what it was they were talking about as they came closer to where Castiel was sat.

“…No, no, no, it was great to start with; I went to her house yesterday evening.” Dean said happily, still smiling at Benny as he spoke.

Looking up briefly, seeing the smiling boy beside him, though he loved the sight of the bright smile upon his face, his joyful laugh that could fill the room, everything about him captivated Castiel from the moment he first saw him. The fact he knows where this laugh is from; Lisa though, he looked back down to his phone, trying to hide his jealousy over the matter by instead reading of Kirk and Spock. Though he was still able to hear all the two were saying about Dean’s late night date, that smooth voice portraying every emotion flawlessly, the same voice he could happily sit by and listen to talk for hours.

He was brought back to the present as Dean’s voice once again penetrated the silence, missing whatever it was Benny had said for Dean to laugh at his remark. “No, you nosey bastard, we didn’t do _it!_ ” Dean said in mock outrage, causing Benny to chuckle loudly in response. “We walked her dog.” He said finally as the laughing subsided, taking his phone out of his pocket to check the time; only to show that there was still a minute to go before their lesson started.

This was met by a confused look from Benny, “You walked her dog…” he repeated.

“Yes, we walked her dog. We went through the park, past the lake and up to those fields. We talked and we laughed. It was great.” He said smiling as the memories of the previous night filled his mind.

“Well that don’t sound too bad, so explain to me again why she was giving you full blown evils this morning…” he replied, curiosity seeping through his voice.

Looking out of the side of his eye, Castiel could see how Dean was giddy with excitement, though this is what had confused Castiel from the beginning; if people like one another, why one is angry and the other happy still…

“We were on our way back, walking through the park, it was getting pretty dark by then, and she had her hand in mine, the other holding the dogs lead. So I spontaneously pulled her to the side of the bush with me…” Dean said wiggling his eyebrows suggestively, making Benny laugh whilst Castiel’s stomach churned. “…You know how it goes from there.. We made out a little, got to second base.” At that, Benny gave a smile of admiration, waiting for Dean to continue

“Well, she got pretty into it, and I guess let go of the lead, and well the next thing we heard were car breaks screeching loudly, a thump, a yelp, and a man swearing. Her face froze as she pushed me off her, running towards the main road. I guess you can imagine what we saw; but I drove them to the vets and waited with her, but there wasn’t exactly much they could do. So I took her home after everything was well and done, and that was the last I had heard from her, no goodbye, no thank you, just… silence.” He said, recalling the night in as much detail as he could muster.

Castiel had stopped reading half way through Dean’s story, listening intently, and hanging onto every word that came out of the green eyed boy’s mouth. Though keeping his head low as to not arouse suspicion. For some reason he could not quite comprehend, there was a light feeling replacing the one of uneasiness that had been troubling him for the past few days since he heard about Dean and Lisa. At that, a small smile was making its way across his features.

“Brother, you killed her damn dog!” Benny shouted hysterically as the news finally came clear.

“That’s what you got out of all of that?!” Dean asked looking slightly exasperated, though a small smile spreading on his face as Benny continued to laugh. “…Not that I carried the dog, or I let it into Baby, dude, mutts do not travel in her, let alone riding shotgun! I even told Sammy if he grows his hair any longer, then that rule will be extended to him too.” As he said this, they both began to laugh loudly, his smile only growing wider. “And anyway…” he said almost defensively, making both Benny and Castiel look up at him. Benny’s face was bright pink from laughter, the remains of tears in the corners of his eyes whilst Castiel simply looked rather confused more than anything else. “I did not kill the dog, that would have been the driver, and technically _she_ let go of the lead, not me!” He stated.

“That may be true, but I am positive she could link you in pretty easily, you know, that having been your idea, you initiating the…” he paused for a moment thinking of an appropriate term “petting.” He laughed quietly, reaching forward to clap Dean on the shoulder.

“Alright, no need to go Inspector Morse on my ass!” he laughed as Benny retracted his arm, though keeping the eye contact.

“That’s right, just remember that the next time you murder something, consult me first.” He laughed, though Castiel noted on this occasion Dean did not return his laughter, his face hardening as Castiel looked on in confusion at this change of atmosphere over a simple joke…

Benny stopped laughing as he saw Deans face, as though realising what it was he had said, and the implications that may arise from such comments. Looking at Dean, he stared back at him, with Benny attempting to portray an ‘ _I’m sorry’_ look, though Dean simply counteracted this with a bitch face that even Sammy would have been proud of.

Realising he probably should not have been listening to their conversation; Castiel quickly brought his attention back down to the phone in his lap before either party had the chance to see that he had been eavesdropping.

Dean looked away from Benny, looking at his fellow classmates as to assess whether any may have heard their exchange, though chances were no one was actually paying them any attention, all were too engrossed in their own conversations to notice the two boys talking.

Finally, Deans eyes fell to the boy beside him, his messy bedhead, looking pretty much the same as he had seen him every day this week, though not unkempt as such, seeing the soft look to the hair, and the straight brushed strands sticking up in every direction. Moving further down; his blue eyes, so deep he could get lost in them, baby soft skin, wanting to touch it, to see if it feels as soft as it looks, his plump lips forming a large smile Dean could not help but love, the scars becoming more prominent as the smile broadens, the think white strips pushing over, the slight lump forming at the bottom of his lips.

Though being brought out of his staring at the sound of someone coughing, Dean looked around the room to see Benny sat in front of him still, a large grin spread across his face, his eyes darting back and forth between Castiel and Dean, his grin only growing larger as the seconds pass by.

“Oh shut up!” Dean said feebly, his cheeks glowing a rosy shade of pink as he looked to Castiel once more.

“What, I did not say anything.” Benny spoke, feigning innocence.

In response, Dean simply stuck his tongue out at Benny; the both laughing at the other as Deans cheeks slowly regained their natural colouring.

“Settle down now class!” A woman’s voice resonated throughout the room, at this, the other voices slowly faded out until the class came to silence, only a few continuing on their conversations. She walked through the door carrying a large stack of books in her arms and a bag over her shoulder. “Sorry I’m late, but I have got your textbooks for the year here with me.” She said placing the aforementioned books onto the desk beside her.

Castiel looked up, putting his phone back in his pocket, and looking to his left to see Dean looking straight back at him, the green eyed boy smiled broadly which Castiel happily returned before directing his attention to the front of the class.

“Okay, can someone pass these books out…” she directs to no one in particular, everyone slipping further into their chairs ,avoiding eye contact, hoping not to be the unfortunate soul that is pulled forward to hand the books to each person. Looking around the room, her eyes finally settle on Castiel's still form, pushed back into the chair as he looks straight back at her, his face turning a paler colour at the realisation.

Dean seems to notice this, looking to his left and seeing the terrified boy, his hands in his lap shaking slightly, this was enough for him to come to a decision. He quickly jumped to his feet, “I volunteer!” He spoke loudly, “I volunteer as tribute!” He shouted loudly this time, the whole class looking to him, many laughing at the outburst, though Castiel simply looked up at him in amazement and admiration.

As he made his way through the class, people began to hold their hands up with the three finger solute, something he saw as he stood at the front, smiling broadly, he whistled a four note tune as he held his hand up also. Taking the pile of books, he made his way around the room, placing books on each table. When he finally made it back to his own desk, he gave Castiel a large smile which was returned with a relieved, thankful smile of his own.

“Thank you!” Castiel said quietly, a shy smile spreading over his face as he looked up to see Dean still looking at him with his bright green eyes and that perfect smile painted over his face.

“No problem.” He replied happily.

Castiel opened his mouth to respond to Dean, though before he had the chance to do so, their teacher, Mrs Patel, made her way to the front of the room in everyone’s sight. Castiel quickly closed his mouth, bringing his attention back to their teacher.

“Open your books to page… two hundred and seventy one” she said after flicking through the book in her hand to find the page that they would need for the lesson ahead. Looking back out to the sea of faces ahead of her, she smiled kindly at Castiel before continuing her lecture. “We are going to discuss _‘Actus Reus’_ today.” She broadcasted across the room, peaking Castiel's attention. “You have five minutes to find and rite a definition… Go!”

With that, a few began to furiously scribble on the paper strewn across their desks, Castiel included, whilst the majority of the class looked around at others, many looking bored or confused.

After the five minutes ended, Mrs Patel spoke from behind her desk “I hope you all have something written down.” She said as she made her way around the room “Emily?” she asked the girl in front of her, though she looked down at her sheet which had nothing on it.

Looking further around the room, her eyes fell on Dean who was talking quietly with Benny again. Making her way across the room, the boy did not look up, neither even noticed her presence until Castiel tapped Dean on the arm, turning around he saw the woman standing with an expectant look on her face. “Mr. Winchester.”

“Mrs Patel.” He responded in kind.

“Would you care to share what Actus Reus is…” she said as he looked back to her.

“Of course he replied.” Clearing his throat slightly before he responded; “Actus Reus is the guilty act, this can be described through an act, an omission or a state of affairs.” He spoke confidently, the class having grown quiet as no one expected the definition to be known by the loud boy that talks throughout the majority of his classes.

“Correct, those of you that did not have anything down, I hope you have copied Dean’s explanation. And for those of you that were not listening, Actus Reus is the guilt act…” She continued to speak though neither Castiel nor Dean paid her any attention.

Looking to his left, Dean saw Castiel looking at him in surprise, “I’m not just a pretty face you know.” Dean laughed.

Castiel blushed furiously at this as he spoke quietly “I-I never said t-that.” He stuttered out.

Dean smiled before whispering “Not aloud.” And winking at Castiel before turning around to Benny who was chuckling under his breath at their exchange. “You think I’m pretty don’t you?” He asked fluttering his eyelashes and feigning innocence.

Benny laughed loudly once again “Of course you are princess, just look at you. Eyes of a Disney princess.” He joked, moving forward to inch Dean’s cheeks as he spoke, for the two to just laugh harder, Castiel joining in weakly.

After a few minutes of Silence, Dean spoke up; “My brother” he said.

“Excuse me?” Castiel asked, confused as to what Dean meant.

“That why I knew the answers, you looked a little shocked at my knowledge.” He said turning to look at Castiel a smile growing on his face. “Sammy, he wants to be a lawyer, so he is always telling me about this.” Dean said fondly, looking past Castiel almost, though coming back to him quickly.

“You took this class so you could talk with your brother about it?” Castiel asked, his head tilting to  the side as he looked across Dean’s face.

He chuckled at how adorable this boy looked. “Well yes, I guess so. Plus law is kind of interesting I guess, I mean did you know that S and M is seen as illegal by the state.”

“I didn’t know you were one for Sado-masochistic practices.” Castiel laughed as Dean flushed pink, though this did not last long, he quickly began laughing alongside Castiel, wishing to hear more of that angelic sound.

“Well, learn something new every day, don’t ya.” Dean winked, though proceeded to laugh louder at the horror sketched across Castiel’s face “I’m joking!” He breathed out. This sent a flash of relief through Castiel.

The rest of the lesson after that was spent quietly writing down everything their teacher said for Castiel. Though Dean on the other hand would write down the occasionally sentence, though other than that had spent the lesson watching Castiel, his face of pure concentration, furiously scribbling down notes and trying to understand everything that was said.

Although Castiel did see Dean looking at him, unsure how to approach this conversation, he simply kept his head to his work, though all he could think about was the green eyes boy watching him… out of all people, him. There were so many more interesting people in the class, hell the seat across from him sat a girl with long blonde hair, she had a good figure, and her hair looked so very soft. Thinking this through, the only possible explanation Castiel could think of was that this was the person Dean was watching, Castiel just happened to be sat in the way on this occasion. Dean was just looking straight past him.

* * *

As the lesson finally came to a close, they were all issued a set of homework that was due Monday morning, the majority of the class once again complaining to one another about the fact of having only just started the year and already there was work outside of class, how unfair this was…

Castiel though simply put his left headphone in his ear, continuing to listen to his music, humming to himself as he went along.

“come on Rapunzel, we have class now.” Benny laughed as he walked towards the door, Dean not far behind.

After pulling his bag over his shoulder, Dean looked behind him at the content Castiel packing his things neatly back into his bag with precision. He glanced up to see Dean looking at him again, he offered a shy smile before Dean gave a short wave and a “Seeya later Cas.” As he walked out of the door, talking animatedly with Benny as the two of them continued to laugh down the hall until Castiel could no longer hear his strong laugh.

* * *

Once their morning lessons were out of the way, and lunch was in sight, Castiel and Charlie once again made their way outside, spreading out below their tree and taking out their books.

They sat/lay there for a  good ten minutes before Charlie looked up to see Castiel staring at the empty picnic bench opposite them. He had a vacant look on his face, his eyes not focused on anything in particular, just the set there.

After watching him not move, Charlie slowly moved herself so she was sitting up, moving to be opposite him, this slowly brought Castiel’s attention back to her, he offered a slightly confused smile. “What is wrong?” he asked tilting his head to the left a little.

“I should be asking you that.” Charlie said, trying to read his face for what may have been troubling him. Although they had only known each other for a week, this was the closest Castiel had felt to someone outside of his family, someone he felt comfortable around and vice versa.

“I do not understand?” He asked, moving his legs so he was mimicking Charlie, the both sat opposite one another, their legs crossed, and their hands firmly place in their laps. Their books had been placed carefully on the grass with the bookmarks in place.

“You seem a little… vacant today?” She asked, unsure if this would be the suitable terminology to use.

After a moment of deliberation, Castiel confessed  everything that had happened, everything he was thinking, how he thought it would have been the girl across from him that Dean was looking at instead, though after having described the blonde girl to Charlie, she began to laugh, twisting around and falling back into Castiel lap, smiling up at him as he sat there bewildered.

“Oh Cas, that is Jo, trust me, Dean would not be looking at her like that.” She laughed, this gave Castiel some ease at thought, though he was still confused as to why Charlie was laughing at him…

Looking up to his still confused expression, Charlie took one of his hands in her own, “Cas, you know your Latin teacher… Bobby?” She asked with a smile across her face.

Castiel though about this for a moment before nodding his head slightly.

“That’s his daughter!” she replied “Well, step daughter at least, but he has been around her since she was little, more of a father than anyone else.”

“I do not understand why that means Dean cannot have relations… Jo?” He asked, still thoroughly confused.

“Bobby is best friends with Dean’s dad, Bobby is Dean’s Godfather, he and Jo practically grew up together, it would be like dating family…” She said, at that something seemed to click inside of Castiel, and a large smile grew over his face.

“So he was looking at me?!” He asked, shocked at this revelation, it made perfect sense beforehand that he would look at him to start with, he was the new kid, he had visible scars, this always seemed to draw unwanted attention. But even now, why is he still looking at him, why would he still be looking at him…

He was soon brought back to reality by the chirpy voice below him singing “Castiel and Dean, sitting in a tree K-I-S-S-I-N-G!” she sang happily.

Castiel's face quickly grew red as he looked around to ensure that no one was listening to her, though luckily they appeared to be the only ones outside, other than the small group of people making their way over.

As they walked closer, he could begin to make out their frames, the one walking on the far left was slightly broader than the one in the middle, he had unkempt hair, whilst the one in the middle was the tallest of the three, his arms swung around their shoulders whilst the one on the right was smaller than the first two, with long blonde hair.

After a moment of watching them walk, it finally dawned on Castiel who these three were, he quickly put his hand over Charlie’s mouth to silence her singing, wishing the others not to hear.

Sitting up, she caught a glimpse of the trio as they made their way onto the picnic bench opposite them. she turned to look at Castiel who was currently the colour of a beetroot and could not help but laugh though she silently too her left hand and mimicked locking her mouth and throwing the key away.

This made Castiel smile, to know that he really could trust her, pushing back, he sat up against the tree as she once again lay over him. Though having completely forgotten about their books, they simply began to talk once more, though this time it was Charlie who spoke aloud first.

“Can I tell you something?” She asked.

Castiel looked down at her with a bright smile on his face before replying “Of course.”

“There’s a girl.” She said her face cracking into a goofy grin just thinking about it.

Castiel looked around the school grounds trying to find who it was she was talking about, though the only girl he could see was that of Jo sitting on the bench opposite them, a knife in her hand flicking it about a little as Dean and Benny laughed.

When he looked back down, he noticed Charlie had been looking in the same direction as he had. “That girl?” He asked.

The only response he saw was the slightest nod of her head as she kept her eyes trained on Jo.

Leaning back, Castiel rested his head on the trunk, closing his eyes as he basked in the sun shining on his face, his hands carding through Charlie’s hair as she followed in suit, relaxing completely and letting out a content sigh.

They carried on like this throughout the entirety of their lunch break, in a comfortable silence with the occasional comment on something random, may that have been something this reminded one of. With Castiel there was one memory he shared from when he was younger; **_his eldest brothers had arranged a day at the beach for them all, Castiel, Gabriel, Anna and of course Michael and Lucifer. They all went to the beach that was only a short train journey, they spent the morning playing in the arcades, eating ice cream, cotton candy, sweets, doughnuts, everything  they could see until lunch time finally arrived._**

**_They all sat down on the beach, over two blankets that the brothers had packed into their bags, backs against the small wall and feet in the sand, each holding a tray of fish and chips in their laps whilst they slowly ate them, talking about what it was they wanted to do for the rest of the day, Gabriel of course wanted to go to the theme park behind them, though Castiel was not fond of that idea. Instead, they settled for swimming in the sea, with it having been a hot summers day, the water was warm, though not too warm, and with this being a beach that was not well known of, there were not that many others around. So Gabriel, Anna and Lucifer ran as fast as they could into the water whilst Castiel and Michael stayed on the blankets._ **

**_Michael had asked Castiel why he did not want to join his sibling in the water, though he had simply chosen to stay with his brother and keep him company. Michael had never been fond of water, and though he would do whatever he had to for his siblings, if there was an opportunity where he did not_ have _to go into the water, he would take it and this was no exception._**

**_The two brothers had stayed there for an hour before they heard screaming, looking up, they saw Lucifer and Gabriel with their arms around Anna’s waist as she limped on her left leg. Michael ran forward and grabbed her in his arms, carrying her back to the blankets to sit her down and assess any damage._ **

**_Even from a young age, Michael had always wanted to help people, and so this was no exception. Asking Anna what was wrong, she pointed to her left leg where long pink marks could be seen clinging all around the leg, the only explanation having been a jelly fish. Michael ordered Gabriel to get chopped tomatoes whilst Lucifer ran to get some clean water to wash her leg. Castiel stayed put with Anna’s head in his lap as he carded his fingers through her hair in a motion he knew to be calming as this is what she had done to him many times. He then began to softly sing to her as she looked up at him, her large green eyes watching him with adoration as Michael sat beside her watching everything Castiel was doing._ **

**_As Lucifer and Gabriel returned, they saw Castiel singing and carding his hands through Anna’s hair, and all sat upon the blanket captivated by this. Michael began to slowly rub the tomatoes over the stings on Anna’s leg, though she barely noticed anything other than her baby brother._ **

After Castiel had finished telling her this story, Charlie told him how her mother would read the Hobbit to her as a child, and this was where her deep interest in fantasy realms.

Both enjoying to learn about one another and their traits, and how they were developed.

As lunch finally came to an end, they were both picking their bags up of the ground as Charlie nudged Castiel in the ribs, diverting her eyes to where Dean was still sat, though this time he was looking at Castiel with a deep smile on his face. “Hasn’t stopped looking at you all afternoon.” She said “Do you believe me now that it wasn’t Jo he had been looking at.” She laughed.

When Castiel looked over to Dean, he saw that he was in fact looking straight at Castiel, the smile still evident on his face, though as green eyes connected with blue, there was a light pink shade growing in his cheeks which only served to make Castiel’s stomach twist more knots at the unfamiliar sensation.

* * *

Within their final lessons of the day, Castiel and Charlie were in the same classes, as was the infamous Dean Winchester who Charlie would point out when he was looking at Castiel, causing both boys to blush, which Charlie found simply adorable.

By the end of their lesson,  both Castiel and Dean had been caught staring at one another, which Charlie had loved every moment, giving Dean sky looks of recognition whenever she saw him staring at Castiel's back whilst they were working.

“Do you wasn't to stay at my house tonight?” Castiel asked as they made their way out of the room. “Then we can do the whole marathon, start to finish and you don't gave to worry about when you need to leave.”

Charlie turned to look at Castiel, although it had only been a week since they had met, this was by far the closest she had felt to someone over the past few months, and it made her heart jump that that someone felt the same way. “Of course I do! Lord of the Rings marathon at mine next weekend? I have the extended editions of the Hobbit too, and then we can go to the cinema and watch the Battle of the Five Armies!” She said excitedly dragging the blue eyed boy down the hall and towards their lockers.

“I need to go home and get some clothes though first, okay?” She asked, closing her locker waiting for Castiel to do the same so they could be on their way. When he did not reply, she looked behind him to see that none other than Dean Win Hester was standing by his own locker looking at Castiel once again, though it appeared he had failed to notice Charlie's glance.

Turning back to Castiel, she leaned in to whisper in his ear “You know, lover boy has t been able to keep his eyes off of you all day!” At that though, Castiel turned around to glance that Dean was still looking at him. He offered a weak smile.

At that, Dean took a deep breath, making his way over to where Castiel was standing. “Hey Cas!” He said in his deep voice, his green eyes glued onto Castiel’s blue eyes.

“H-hello Dean.” He said feebly, fiddling with the hem of his Trench coat.

Charlie simply stood by, a smirk on her face as she watched the exchange between the two, obviously looking as nervous as the other, which for Castiel was not uncommon, though for Dean, this was not a side of himself he would willingly or regularly showcase.

“so Cas, there is a party, I'm having a party tonight.” He rephrased, stumbling over his words, mentally cursing himself for acting like a thirteen year old girl, he was a man for Christ’s sake! He should not be so easily flustered, especially around this boy he barely knew; this gorgeous, blue eyes boy standing right in front of him.  “Um yeah, so I was wondering if you wanted to come. It could be fun?” He asked awkwardly unsure to Castiel’s answer.

Castiel on the other hand was surprised by this; this beautiful, green eyed boy was asking him to go to his party. How he would love that; to get to see where Dean lives, thinking about what his room would look like,  but then another thing game to mind, this is a high school party, now Castiel has not been to a high school party before, not like this anyway. Though if films have taught him anything, it is that they will be loud, consist of a lot of people within a small, confined space, and lots of alcohol. Something that makes Castiel feel oddly uneasy about. Though being brought back to the present day, he realised that he was just staring at an expectant and awkward Dean  it out having replied yet. “I'm sorry, that sounds great, and thank you for the invitation, though I am afraid Charlie and I have made plans for tonight.” He hurried out, hopping this would be a valid excuse without burning whatever fragment of friendship he may have created with Dean.

“Oh, that's okay.” He said sounding a little deflated. “Charlie can come too if she likes” he said hopefully to Castiel,  a certain gleam caught in his eye that mad Castiel’s heart melt.

Suddenly, a large bang made them both turn around with startled looks on their faces. They were met with a taunting grin from the redhead. “Thank you for the invite, we will see where the night takes us.” She said with a small laugh as she dragged Castiel away from the lockers and towards the buses.

As they sat down in their seats, Castiel turned to Charlie, a doubtful expression painted on his face. “Are we really going to Dean Winchesters party?” He asked. “What if this is just some joke they are pulling on the new kid…” He said almost fearfully.  

“Oh Cas,” she said putting her arm around his shoulder, “they only do that in films” she laughing reassuringly.

“B-but won't there be copious amounts of people there..?” He asked.

“There won't be that many people, anyway, I will be with you every step of the way!” She said with a bright smile, though seeing Castiel was still unsure, she added “Please Cas, please, please, please! This may be the best time for me to try and get with Jo, who knows when this opportunity will come around again! I promise you won’t be alone, I will be there too!” She pleaded, throwing her head into his lap.

Castiel looked at her with a small smile playing at her lips, seeing as this was for his friends happiness, he would try, plus she will be there, what is the worst that can happen. And Dean, Dean will be there, maybe he could talk to Dean…

Looking back down at Charlie, she had made her eyes as wide as she could with her lower lip pouting out, it was adorable to say the least. Castiel could not help the small laugh that escaped his lips as he said “fine.” 

From that, Charlie rose from his lap with the biggest grin on her face. “Really. You mean that?!” She asked. When Castiel gave a small nod for affirmation, she looked as though someone had given her a million dollars, throwing her arms around Castiel's, she sang his praise and continuously thanked him throughout their journey home.

* * *

Departing from the bus, the pair first made their way to Charlie's house to pick out some clothes she could wear, though rather than picking out specifics now, they put a number of possible options into a bag ready to make their choice once at Castiel's house.

Once they had entered the Novak household, the first residents they saw were Gabriel and Lucifer in the kitchen, Michael was pulling a pie out of the oven as Gabriel was trying to take pieces of the pie for himself/ Michael on the other hand was sitting in the upstairs study searching through possible jobs from both the surrounding papers and the internet searches, though letting out a frustrated sigh, he pushed the papers from the desk and onto the floor.

Turning around, he saw that Castiel and Charlie were standing close to him, giving them both warm welcoming's, they had all began treating Charlie as a part of the family, and so would greet her fondly every time they had saw her, not surprised the slightest whenever they would come home to her raiding their fridge.

“Michael?” Castiel asked as they moved to sit down near to him.

“Castiel?” He answered with a small laugh, intrigued to the reason Castiel would be addressing him so formally.

“I was wondering…” Castiel trailed off, trying to pick up his voice as he noticed Michael’s reassuring smile. “I was wondering if I could go to a party?” he asked, quickly adding “Tonight.” as an afterthought.

Michael looked to Charlie, laughing a little, though not unkindly, “Charlene Bradbury!. What have you done to our sweet innocent Castiel? We had to bribe him into leaving the house before you came along!”

“What can I say Michael Novak, it is one of my many talents! Though I think a certain green eyed boy may have had an influence in there too.” She said, laughing to the pink low resonating on Castiel’s cheeks, though greatly due to the complete look of surprise over Michael’s face.

He turned to look at Castiel once the latest news had finally sunk in. “A boy?!” he asked. Michael knew, in fact all of Castiel’s family knew of his preference to boys, and all in this household were fully supportive of this, Gabriel would even try to set Castiel up with every cute boy he had seen.

“Yes Mike.” Came a happy voice from the doorway, “Castiel is a boy. You know that thing between his legs he used to find the most amusing thing as a child. A slight giveaway don’t you think!” He laughed, licking the remainder of cherry pie off of his finger tips.

“No, Castiel likes a boy.” Michael said.

“Again, yes Mikey, we are all aware of Castiel’s latent homosexuality.” He stated.

“No Gabriel!” he rephrased, “Castiel _likes a boy!_ ”

This new set of information made Gabriel’s jaw drop, running over to Csatiel, he grabbed him in his arms, spinning him around in the air. Although Gabriel was shorter than Castiel, he was much stronger, and easily able to lift the lighter boy into the air as he shouted “Finally my boy is becoming a man!”

Though as he left the room, it was easy to make out the sound of Gabriel shouting Lucifers name down the hall. Moments later, the same man appreared in the doorway, running forward to Castiel, he threw his arms around him, sliding something small into his back pocket as he did so, leaving the room with a small laugh.

The three were still standing/sitting in the study when they heard Lucifer and Gabriel singing loudly to _‘I kissed a girl’._

“Right, you two go and get ready then whilst I sort those two out.” He said as he made his way towards the door, though not before he slipped something into Castiel's other pocket, and making his way down the stairs.

As Charlie and Castiel made their way towards his room, the music could still be heard, though this time there were three voices singing loudly instead of two.


	10. Telling me what your heart meant...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so sorry this took so long to update, I have had so much work to do at the moment.
> 
> Trigger warnings: Mention of panic attacks, assault, 'sexual assault' of forms, though more of 'groping' though in it's manner I believe one could describe the actions taken to be sexual assault.
> 
> I thought I would just state as a little clarification here, that Assault is act of which causes the victim to apprehend (fear) an immediate infliction of unlawful violence. Which in this case I believe has been satisfied to the extent of which permits the warning.

After having taken a lengthy shower, Castiel wrapped a towel around his waist, taking another to scrunch upon the top of his head. He made his way back across the hall and into his room, finding a large pile of clothing atop his bed, with all of his draws and wardrobe doors handing open.

Before he fully had the time to collect his thoughts upon the sight ahead of him, he heard a female voice muffled over shout “Think fast!” and before he knew it, a pair of black boxers had landed on top of his towelled head, a pair of socks hitting him square in the shoulder, blue jeans falling by his feet and a top being thrown into his face.

Castiel stood stock still whilst he was assaulted by numerous articles of clothing, all now sitting lifeless on the floor around him. A read head appearing from behind the bed gave him a questioning look, “I said think fast!” she recounted motioning to the clothing strewn around his body.

“I heard you. Though you did not tell me the subject by which I would be thinking about, and then you throw things at me..?” Castiel asked almost innocently, his blue eyes shining as he cocked his head to the side slightly.

“’Think fast’, dumbass means that you think fast, as in something is going to be within your general direction soon, and you need to think about it quickly. For example, the clothing.” Charlie laughed happily. “I’m going to take a shower. You mind?” she asked, though was already on her way out of the door.

“Not at all, towels are in the airing cupboard and there is all the shit in there already.” Castiel said as he began picking the clothing off the floor.

* * *

When Charlie walked back into Castiel’s room she had a towel twisted within her hair, light grey jeans fitting tightly to her legs, a pink top and a colourful shirt sitting over the top.

Castiel's head popped up from the corner of the room, lifting himself off of the beanbag and setting his book on his desk, he looked at Charlie, smiling happily “Not bad.” He says pulling the corner of Charlie’s shirt from the inside of her jeans where it has been tucked in.

“Not bad yourself there.” Charlie laughs assessing the image in front of her, Castiel dressed in his simple clothing, the jeans accentuating everything he has, the top hanging loosely around his small frame whilst his trench coat is pulled around him once again.

Taking her phone out of her pocket, Charlie noted that it was still only quarter past five. “Okay, we have an hour and a half still.” Charlie says as she jumps down on Castiel’s bed, throwing her head forward whilst she pulled the towel through her hair, shaking it around as she dried her hair.

Once her hair was thoroughly messed up, she pulled her head up, her hair flicking behind her back, twice the size it usually was. “What do you think?” she joked, Castiel laughed loudly as he sat down beside her on the bed poking at her hair.

* * *

They both had their books out again, lying spread out across Castiel's bed, Castiel was lay with his back against the headboard and his legs spread across the bed whilst Charlie lay on her stomach, with her feet crossed behind her back in the air.

The pair lay like that comfortably whilst the hour and a half passed, Michael bringing both in some snacks and drinks which each gratefully accepted, drinking the cans of coke as fast as they could and seeing who could burp the loudest. On this occasion it was Castiel who won by a landslide.

When Charlie had finally decided it was time for them to leave, the party had been in motion for a while now, so they would not be the first ones there, Charlie takes a hold of Castiel's hand, noticing his wide eyes and the slight tremor running through his hands.

“It’s okay Cas, we don’t have to go. We can stay home and watch films, Jim and Anne aren’t home this weekend, and I am pretty sure we have some popcorn, you know, take out, sleepover, braid each other’s hair.” She laughed happily, showing Castiel she was fully prepared to skip out on the party and just spend time at home. This was something that Castiel was immediately grateful for, that Charlie was prepared to miss a chance with Jo, for _him!_

Taking a deep breath, Castiel replied “No, no, it’s okay you know, you already made me get dressed, and look at you, people need to see this!” he laughed gesturing towards the appearance Charlie had made of herself.

She smiled shyly at the comment, whispering “Dean’s gonna love you!” they both smiled towards one another before Charlie linked her arm through Castiel's saying “Well, I’m gonna be with you.” And with that, she took the book out of Castiel's hand, placing both his and her book on the desk, neatly before saying “Well there’s no time like the present.” Castiel offers a weak smile as she pulls him towards the stairs descending onto the ground floor of the house.

* * *

As they descended the stairs, all four of Castiel’s siblings were waiting in a uniformed line for them. Gabriel was on the far left, currently eating a chocolate bar with numerous wrappers sticking out of his pockets. To his right stood Michael who had an arm around Lucifer’s shoulder, he was smiling kindly at both Castiel and Charlie whilst Lucifer on the other hand had more of a mischievous smirk playing at his lips. Finally, Anna was standing to the far right of the line, beside Lucifer.

“Anna!” Castiel exclaimed as he ran down the remaining stairs and jumped upon his sister’s small frame.

After a long hug, Castiel moved away from Anna, a huge smile across his face “Why are you here? How are you here?!” he asked in a frantic succession.

Anna smiled happily at Castiel saying “You really think I would miss my little brothers first party?” in that gentle tone she always used when talking to Castiel especially, “And I took the train, even managed to finish all of my work on the way down.” She said in a carefree manner.

Turning around, he saw Charlie standing at the bottom of the stairs, moving forward he grabbed her hand dragging her towards where Anna was standing. “Anna, this is Charlie.” He said as he pushed her forward.

Anna looked from Charlie to Castiel, and then back to Charlie before looking to her other siblings. “Charlie?” she said looking back to Castiel, still slightly confused.

Lucifer laughed happily, pulling Anna close to him before saying “No, Cassie here is the only one into dick out of the two of them.”

“Lucifer!” Michael scolded, flicking his brother on the ear before looking back to Anna and smirking “He is right though.”

Castiel just stood there, looking at his brothers in dismay before taking Charlie’s hand, “Right, we are out now.” He said, though turned around to look at Anna once they reached the door. “How long are you here for?” he questioned curiously.

“Just the weekend.” She replied as Castiel finished tying the laces together on his shoes.

“Well, I apologise for my leaving so abruptly” he said “but for that, you can blame Charlie here.” He stated as they made their way out of the door, bidding farewell to all of Castiel’s siblings.

Faint shouts of “Be safe!”, “Condoms and lubricant are your friends!” and “Make good choices!” could be heard through the thick wood of the door, the four remaining siblings now stood at the windows, waving franticly which just served to make Castiel and Charlie laugh harder as they made their way down the steps at the front of the house and down the path towards the road.

Suddenly, Charlie turned to Castiel, stopping abruptly, “ _Did_ you bring condoms?” she asked in a playful tone, laughing heartily as Castiel’s face lit up like a Christmas tree and he began _dragging_ her down the path.

* * *

After fifteen minutes of walking slowly through the roads and laughing with one another, Castiel and Charlie finally arrived within view of the Winchester residence. It wasn’t the largest house on the street, though it was enough for this family, the small white picket fence, the clean white exterior and green front lawn. Though the peace and tranquillity of the outside of the house what broken when bright lights began to shine through and the music was turned up even louder, copious amounts of people, large and small groups walking up the steps and onto the porch before disappearing through the front door.

At this sight, Castiel’s whole body froze, his grip on Charlie’s arm tightening just the slightest, though enough to show something was wrong. Slowly, she turned around to see Castiel’s expression, his large eyes surveying the house in front of them. Standing directly in front of Castiel, she offered him a sympathetic smile before saying loudly to be heard over the music “Do you want to go?”

Castiel looked at her, giving a small, weak smile in return before shaking his head just the slightest as they slowly made their way onto the porch before opening the doors.

Castiel had not been to a house party before, had never had the reasoning to do so, although as he walked through the door, Charlie kept a hold of him, no one seemed to be overly drunk, _yet_ at least, so that seemed to be a positive, and there weren’t as many people as he had expected. Though as soon as that thought came to him, a large group of people ran past him shouting “Fight!” and almost knocking him to the ground had Charlie not still had a death grip on his arm.

At that, they made their way in the opposite direction to which the others were running, not wanting to get involved with such events. As they reached the kitchen, it was much quieter, and far emptier than the rest of the house which served to relax Castiel a little at least.

“Do you want a drink Cas?” Charlie asked as she grabbed a red plastic cup from the table and began filling it with different liquids from the table ahead of them. blues were poured in, as were reds, greens, browns, yellows and oranges, all creating a dark looking mixture which did not look overly appetizing.

Castiel looked to the table, taking a red cup of his own, though from the middle of the stack, and inspecting it to ensure it was clean before pouring some lemonade from the bottle in front of him into the cup, filling it half way before reaching down and taking a straw from the bag beside him and placing that into the cup also.

Charlie laughed a little with Castiel, before pulling the cup up to her lips. Castiel watched her movements, keeping his eyes set on her face as she began to drink the concoction. Suddenly, her face twisted into distaste as the liquid began to burn her throat on the way down, coughing a little; she quickly put the cup back onto the table before taking a new one to fill with a single liquid this time.

Castiel laughed, “Taste good?” he asked sarcastically whilst Charlie stared daggers into him, still coughing slightly.

“Shut it, Novak!” She said in the most serious voice she could, though that did not last long as she then began to laugh, which only served to cause Castiel to laugh even harder.

“Cas! Charlie!” A voice shouted from across the room which made both Castiel and Charlie slowly turn around, their laughter subsiding as they searched for the owner of the voice, it was not until Charlie elbowed Castiel in the ribs and offered a small wink that he noticed none other than Dean Winchester walking over to them, a large smile painted across his face and a red cup resting in his hand.

Once he had finally made his way around the random people, Dean came to stand beside Castiel, offering a bright smile and knocking his cup into Charlie’s, saying “You made it!” Though Charlie could see that his statement was obviously aimed towards Castiel more than her.

“Well, Charlie convinced me that we have two more days in which to consume as much food as humanly possible and complete a Harry Potter marathon.” He said as loudly as he could, though the music resonating through the house meant even his loudest voice was not that easily heard. Due to this, Dean was forced to lean in close, watching Castiel’s lips move in order to understand what he was saying, though became distracted watching those pink lips accentuate each word he said, the small scars hardly visible, other than the long thin one running across his lip.

It was only after the lips had stopped moving that Dean looked back up to Castiel who was now looking back at Castiel, though his lips were locked onto Dean’s also.

Quirking a small smile, Dean brought his eyes to look at Charlie standing beside Castiel with bright smile across her lips, though it was a genuine smile, and not the mocking type Dean had seen from others in the past, though this was then accompanied by a friendly wink and her eyes darting in Castiel’s direction.

Dean laughed softly, though a slight pink colour was brought to his cheeks which made Charlie smile to herself. Hearing the soft laugh from beside him, Castiel looked up, snapping out of his daze to see both Dean and Charlie looking at him, he smiled shyly at them.

Seeing this made Dean’s heart melt and he could not help but smile a little at him, though again they were brought of their states by the shouting of “Fight!” becoming louder. As Dean looked at the masses of people running through the house, Dean looked back to Castiel with an almost sad smile before say “Right, I better go make sure they don’t break shit.” He laughed before Clapping Castiel on the shoulder, “See you later Cas!” he shouted over his shoulder before heading out of the kitchen and around the corner, being concealed by the wall.

“So, he seemed happy you are here.” Charlie said to Castiel after Dean was gone.

Castiel simply looked at Charlie in disbelief, why would he be happy of his presence, he did not even stay long to talk, just to say hello, and then off he went. In response, Castiel shrugged his shoulders, looking down to his cup.

“Cas,” She said again “He could not keep his eyes off of you whilst you two were standing there; I swear the two of you blacked out for a moment just staring at one another.” She said with a small nudge to Castiel’s shoulder.

Though it was at that moment she stiffened up slightly, Castiel looking to her to see that her eyes were trained on the door to the kitchen where a young blonde was standing. Castiel smiled at Charlie who looked weakly back at Jo, though it was then that she began to make her way towards them, Castiel nudged Charlie in the side, offering what he had hoped to be a happy smile, saying “Go get her tiger.” With a small laugh.

Charlie looked back to Castiel, “Are you sure? I said I would stay with you… no, no, I said I would that is that, I’m not leaving y-” she began though was promptly cut off by Castiel pushing her forward just that little bit with a content laugh, watching his friend stumble helplessly towards Jo.

It was not long before both Jo and Charlie were laughing with one another, Charlie had kept glancing back to check Castiel was okay, which he would respond with a smile and a thumbs up. After that, both had consumed their fair share of alcohol and Jo had leaned in hesitantly before planting a soft kiss on Charlie’s lips, pulling away just as quickly. Both girls began to blush which made the other laugh just that bit more.

Jo began to pull on Charlie’s arm, asking her to dance. Though looking back to Castiel, he offered a movement of his hands as though to say “Shoo.” She expressed both a hopeful and thankful smile at him before the girls made their way into the living room giggling and holding onto one another.

Only moments had passed since Charlie had left the kitchen to when Castiel felt the unwanted presence of a hand touching his backside. “Come on, you know you want it.” Said the sadistic voice from behind him, the heavy stench off liquor slowly filling his nostrils as he twisted free from the hand slowly squeezing, causing an uncomfortable sensation to flow through him. In that moment, the lips of the other connected with Castiel's cheek as his head spun to the side.

“What the fuck!” the voice shouted venomously before pulling Castiel hard against the closest wall, pushing his own body flat against  him as to trap Castiel like a rat in a maze. At this, Castiel began to panic, his breath hitching slightly, his palms shaking as he struggled to push the boy in front of him off of him.

Alas, after his best attempt, Castiel realised it was to no prevail, this boy was obviously much stronger than him, looking at him though, Castiel could have sworn that his eyes glimmered a deep, poisonous yellow. He moved his head away from the direction of this boy, closing his eyes shut as his hands shook pinned to the wall, waiting for whatever was going to happen to be over already.

Though nothing ever came, in fact the enormous pressure on his body was suddenly gone, though he could not hear anything, nor hardly see anything through the thick layer of tears boiling in his eyes. Without looking for an explanation, Castiel ran as fast as he could, tripping and tumbling as he went, his knees almost giving out throughout the entire short journey. Though by some miracle he made it up the stairs, pushing weakly into the first door he found, he did not even bother to look at his surroundings before running behind the bed and pushing his back against the wall, bringing his knees up to his chest and his trembling hands wrapping around them. He pushed his head behind his knees as he tried to breathe properly, though could only take fast, short breaths whilst the tears would not stop pouring from behind his eyelids.

Whilst he was sat there, he could not hear nor see anything around him, and so did not notice the soft opening and closing of the door, nor the form of a young boy hesitantly making his way beside him.

* * *

As Dean ran up the stairs, he was frantically trying to find where Castiel had ran to, when he had seen Alastair hovering over him like that, something snapped inside him, seeing how broken and pale Castiel was. And now he had lost the boy, that was until he saw a door slightly ajar, hesitantly walking into the room, he was met by muffled crying and heavy breathing.

Quietly closing the door as to not scare the boy, Dean slowly made his way to the other side of the bed, expecting the worse though what he saw terrified him, made him feel scared in comparison to the many things he had seen. Castiel was slumped in the corner, his entire body shaking violently as the crying continued, he was gasping for breath.

Timidly, Dean moved closer to the boy, softly saying his name “Castiel” though no response was given, Dean was unsure if the boy had even heard him. Dean didn’t know exactly what to do in a situation like this, though he knew Castiel needed to control his breathing otherwise he would undoubtedly pass out. Remembering back to when Sammy was young and Dean would always run to his aid, especially after a nightmare, he decided that was his best bet, to try those calming tactics.

Gingerly, he fell to the floor beside Castiel, warily putting his arm around Castiel's shoulders, when the boy did not move, Dean moved closer, beginning to rock Castiel gently. Dean himself felt tears forming in his eyes, blurring his vision as he saw this boy like this, he was so scared as to how this was going to pan out, though knew better than to show fear, so instead he began singing, the same song his mother always used to sing him whenever something was wrong, and the same song he would later sing for Sammy.

“ _Hey Jude, don’t make it bad, take a sad song and make it better. Remember to let her into your heart, then you can start to make it better.”_ he sang softly, his voice cracking slightly on the words as the slow, hot burn of tears began to streak his face.

“ _Hey Jude, don’t be afraid, you were made to go out and set her. The minute you let her under your skin, then you began to make it better._ ” He began to sing slightly louder, the song not only as a deterrent for Castiel, though it served to even calm him slightly. “ _Hey Jude, don’t be afraid, you were made to go out and get her. The minute you let her under your skin, then toy begin to make it better._ ” His voice sung softly throughout the room, reminding himself of the song his mother would sing to him as a child.

“ _And anytime you feel the pain, hey Jude, refrain, don’t carry the world upon your shoulders. For well you know that it’s a fool who plays cool, by making his world a little colder. Nah nah nah nah nah nah nah nah nah._

 _“Hey Jude, don’t let me down, you have found her, now go and get her. Remember to let her into your heart, then you can start to make it better.”_ He continued singing to length, trying his best to calm Castiel as much as he could.

“ _So let it out and let it in, hey Jude, begin. You’re waiting for someone to perform with, and don’t you know that it’s just you, hey Jude, you’ll do. The movement you need is on your shoulder, nah nah nah nah nah nah nah nah nah yeah._

_“Hey Jude, don’t make it bad. Take a sad song and make it better, remember to let her under your skin. Then you’ll be begin to make it, better better better better better better, oh._

_“Nah nah nah nah nah, nah nah nah, hey Jude…”_

With his arm still securely around castiel, though the song had finished and his own tears seemed to have subsided, Castiel on the other hand was still shaking violently, his sobs relentlessly pouring from his soul.

Listening to the next song that was resonating throughout the house, Dean smiled weakly to himself as he began to sing aloud again. “Ramble on”

“ _Leaves are falling all around, it’s time I was on my way. Thank you, I’m  much obliged for such a pleasant stay. But now it’s time for me to go. The autumn moon lights my way. For now I smell the rain, and with it pain, and its headed my way. Sometimes I grow so tired, but I know I’ve got one thing I got to do…_ ”

By the time the second song had come to an end, castiel was still shaking though not as heavily as beforehand, his breathing had somewhat evened though was still much to fast to be considered safe for his health. In response, Dean pulled Castiel closer to himself, taking his other hand to carefully brush the sweat dampened hair out of Castiel’s face. Upon closer inspection, Dean could see that Castiel’s eyes were still squeezed shut, the wrinkles forming in the corners. Slowly, he bent down to place a soft kiss on Castiel’s forehead before he leaned his body back against the wall, rocking gently whilst picking up the current song;

It was over half an hour since Dean had entered the room and Castiel had first spoke, he has begun softly singing to Bon Jovi when he heard the timid, quiet voice of Castiel from below him.

* * *

After having run into the room, Castiel did not know much of what had happened around him, though slowly his senses began to come back to him, firstly he began to smell the soft leather which seemed to be something of s comfort for him. It was then he noticed the soft arms cradling him, though this was not in a harmful manner, rather the touches were soft and delicate as though Castiel was something to be easily broken. This put him further at ease, taking him to the memories where Michael or Lucifer would be able to calm him after anything, they would sing softly whilst rocking him in their lap until he fell asleep, to then carry him to one of their beds where they would not leave him until the morning. They would protect him from anything and anything and anyone. That is what this scene reminded Castiel of, calling him greatly from the state he was in, it was then that his sense of hearing returned and he could hear the soft lullaby of a deep voice singing to him. The voice itself was better than Michael and Lucifer’s, it hit each note perfectly, even though it would wager every so often.

Castiel finally opened his eyes, adjusting his sight so that he could take in everything around him, he felt hot, though content in these arms. It was at that moment he remembered sure he was, that he was not at home, that this was not the smell of any of his siblings. Finally, he turned his head gently to the side to catch a glimpse of who it was with him.

When he saw the boy behind him, his cheeks pink and his eyes closed, resting his head gently against the wall as his lips continued to move. Only then did Castiel realise who it was with him.

He quirked a small smile to see how perfect this boy was. It was then that Castiel regained his voice.

 **“** Bon Jovi?” He asked lifting his head a little from where it had been settled on his knees, his eyes bright and puffy though his breathing had now evened out somewhat, Dean could see that he was still breathing quicker than he should be, his hands still noticeably shaking where they were clasped around his legs. His wide blue eyes quickly found Dean’s cautious green ones, locking together as though it was grounding him to the earth.

“Hey! Bon Jovi rocks… on occasion.” Dean replied softly, giving Castiel a goofy grin which he responded with a weak attempt at a smile.

Suddenly Dean jumped to his feet, causing Castiel to let out an audible gasp. Before he could question Dean’s motives though, the boy was back in front of him, with a large hairbrush positioned in his hand, holding steadily to the stem whilst the bristled head was close to his mouth.  “I’m a cowboy, on a steel horse I ride.” He sang loudly, bringing the brush closer to his mouth as he continued on; “I’m wanted dead or alive. Wanted… dead or alive!”

Seeing this green eyed boy so carefree, hairbrush in hand, _performing_ right in front of Castiel, he could not help but smile a little at the scene in front of him, not a weak smile as before, this was a genuine, happy glimpse of a smile.

Looking down at the boy in front of him, his knees up to his chest and his arms tucked tightly around his legs, though his hands were no longer shaking, his breathing had now evened out and a small smile painted his face.

Dean extended his hand out towards Castiel who looked at it with a confused expression spread across his face for a moment, before placing his own hand in Dean’s. The warmth of Castiel’s hand spread straight through Dean’s fingers and into his body, warming him up immensely as a large smile crossed his face, his hand closed around Castiel’s as he carefully pulled him to his feet.

They were standing mere inches apart, Castiel could count each one of Dean’s freckles if he so wished, could even see the tiny flakes of gold colouring Dean’s eyes, and the small crinkles beside them as the smile stayed as prominent as ever over his lips. Dean on the other hand was mesmerised by Castiel’s eyes, sure he had seen them before, but this close up they were really something.

Keeping his hand still with Castiel’s, Dean began to sing again, picking up from where the song now was; “Sometimes you tell the day, by the bottle that you drink. Sometimes when you’re alone, all you do is drink.” He belted into the hairbrush which was now back beside his lips, his pink, plump lips moving around every word he sang. “I’m a cowboy, on a steel horse I ride; I’m wanted, dead or alive.” He sang before swiftly moving the hairbrush so that it was positioned in front of Castiel's mouth now.

His smile faltered a little as the realisation of what Dean was insinuating came to light. Taking a deep breath, he opened his mouth, singing as loudly as he could muster “Wanted dead or alive!”, though this was not as loud as he had hoped.

Dean’s grin instantly brightened as he pulled Castiel up onto the bed with him. Standing in the middle, face to face, Dean brought the hairbrush back up to his lips and began to sing once more “I walk these streets, a loaded six string on my back. I pay for keeps, ‘cause I might not make it back.” The two carried on throughout the remainder of the song, singing into the hairbrush and even dancing a little on the bed. All of Castiel’s fear had gone, and now all he saw was this gorgeous boy in front of him singing along to songs that were playing throughout the house.

By the end of the third song, Dean fell back down onto the bed, pulling Castiel with him, their hands having never left their original position. Castiel fell beside Dean as they both began to laugh, Dean turned his head to see Castiel's bright blue eyes, though before he could give a second thought, there was a female voice shouting “Cas!” throughout the halls.

Moments later the red head ran into the room, finding Castiel still laying on the bed, she threw her arms around him “Cas! I am so sorry! I am so sorry. This was never meant to happen! We were going to have a good time tonight, you know stick together, and then I had to go and leave you alone. I am so sorry!” she rambled into Castiel's chest as he brought his arm around her, holding her close.

“Charlie, its okay, don’t worry about it, please, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to worry you.”

“Worry me?” She asked, her head snapping up to look at Castiel. “I was with Jo, and then I go into another room hearing people say how a certain Dean Winchester knocked Alastair out cold! The guy was still on the floor when I went to look. I asked someone the story, and what the hell did they tell me...” She stopped when she looked behind Castiel to see another body looking at her, panic in his eyes. “Dean Winchester?” She asked.

“Charlie Bradbury.” He replied, looking to her eyes.

“That’s not the point. I have just run around this house looking for you, and you are here with Dean, you could have at least texted me, or answered your bloody phone at the very least, I was so damn worried!”

“I’m sorry Carlie” he said with all sincerity “Next time you can install a tracking device, you know, Hunger Games style? he said, with that, Charlie brought her head back up once more, a large smile spreading across her face as she saw the happy smile on Castiel’s.

“You know what, I may take you up on that offer!” she laughed before her face turned serious for a moment, “Do you want to go home now?” she asked him.

Castiel gave her a small smile before nodding his head a little, looking slightly embarrassed of himself.

“Okay” Charlie replied, “Just let me get my coat and say goodbye to Jo.” And with that, she was out of the room, closing the door behind her, though not before shouting “Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do!”

Castiel laughed softly before looking back at Dean, his green eyes still trained on him “You punched Alastair?” he asked a little sheepishly.

Dean nodded proudly “Of course I did you bloody idiot” he smiled “What makes you think I condone assault.” He said softly brushing a stray strand of hair from Castiel’s face.

Castiel smiled in response, a light pink painting his face as he averted his attention around the room Albert Einstein? “Nice poster.” Castiel said noting the large amount of posters covering the walls, not exactly how he had pictured Dean to be, the clean floor, made bed, neat bookshelves.

“Oh yeah, you know me, love a bit of Alb!” He laughed. “Oh and this brush!” he said motioning towards the hairbrush still firmly placed in his hand, “This I like to use to brush my flowing locks!” he laughed, shaking his head as to accentuate his ‘flowing locks’.

“Well, you do have very nice hair.” Castiel smiled.

Dean laughs at that, pulling his hand through his hair in a slightly self-conscious way, a sight blush tinting his cheeks. “This is Sammy’s room actually; he’s a huge geek for this kind of crap.” He said happily.

“That does make slightly more sense.” Castiel said moving to stand up, his hand slipping out of Dean’s.

Dean looked down to his now empty hand, missing the way Castiel’s hand fit so perfectly between his, the warmth that emitted through his body.

* * *

As Castiel and Dean left Sammy’s bedroom, no one around them seemed to even notice them, let alone Castiel who was walking with his head down, Dean led him through the crowd which was much thinner now seeing as many had either gone home or were passed out on the front lawn.

When they made their way towards the kitchen, both Castiel and Dean smiled at seeing Jo and Charlie standing in front of one another, Jo’s arm was around the back of Charlie’s waist, large smiles on both faces as Charlie took a strand of Jo’s long hair, twisting it around her right index finger, laughing at something Jo had said.

Neither party seemed to notice the arrival of Castiel and Dean, though rather Jo simply pulled on Charlie’s waist, planting a deep kiss on her lips.

After a few moments of watching the interaction between the two, Dean turned to Castiel holding his index finger up to his lips. Castiel nodded at this, remaining silent as he watched Dean move forward until he was standing directly between Charlie and Jo.

Without a moment’s hesitation, Dean shouted “Pudding!” In response, both girls pulled apart, Charlie almost falling flat on her backside, had Jo still not had a hold of her.

On the other hand, Castiel had moved forward, and both he and Dean were laughing so hard that Dean’s face was turning pinker by the moment, moving closer to one another, Dean was practically leaning on Castiel whilst Charlie stared daggers at both of them.

As Dean finished laughing, he was the first to speak up “Well, seeing as the two of you _obviously_ aren’t finished here, I will take Cas home if you want?” he asked turning to Castiel who smiled innocently, nodding his head a little not wanting to tear Charlie away from Jo.

“Okay Cas, let me just tell Benny to keep an eye on everything whilst I am gone.” He said, and with that he was making his way across the room to Benny, pulling him on the shoulder as they began to talk. Suddenly Benny looked over to where Castiel was standing; he offered a genuine smile at Castiel and nodded to Dean.

Whilst Dean made his way across the room, there was the shout of a “seeya, Brother!” in a happy tone as Dean then responded with a swift two fingers at his friend and a hearty laugh.

When Dean made his way back to Castiel he smiled softly before saying “Ready to go?” as he put his hand on the small of Castiel’s back.

In response, Castiel quickly moved away from Dean’s touch, bowing his head.

Dean gave a small questioning look to Charlie at Castiel’s sudden movement, though she responded with a small shrug of her shoulders.

Turning back to Castiel, Dean smiled as he dug his car keys out of his pocket, Castiel in turn smiled weakly before following Dean out the door, though not before Charlie whispered “Be safe” with a small wink.

* * *

Once they were standing outside, Dean turned to look at Castiel, smiling at him, “So, where to?” He asked.

“I thought we were going home?” Castiel asked somewhat confused.

“Well, I can take you home if that is what you want, or we can go get food. I don't know about you, but I am bloody starving!” He laughed softly which simply served to make Castiel smile bright and wonderful.

Castiel gave a small nod as they made heir way down the path and towards Dean’s car.

At that, Dean smiled joyfully, opening the passenger door for Castiel to get in before walking around to the drivers side snd getting in himself. “Okay, what do you say to burgers? And I tell you now if you say you don't like burgers then, I cannot look at you.” He said with a smile.

Castiel laughed lightly before attempting to speak again “I very much like burgers” he said quietly.

Dean threw his fist into the air shouting “hurrah!” as he began to pull it out the drive way, heading out of his street. “There's this place, ‘the Roadhouse’, Jo’s mom owns it, and she loves me and makes damn good pie too. Is that okay with you?” He asked turning slightly to see castiel’s response which was an enthusiastic smile and a vibrant nod of his head.

Dean laughed softly before turning on the cassette player, “oh, and house rules; driver picks the music, shotgun shuts his cakehole!” He laughed as Asia began to play throughout the car.

Softly tapping his hand on the wheel, Dean began to sing aloud, though when he looked over to see Castiel staring at him wide eyed, he quickly stopped singing, turning slightly pink.

“You don't have to stop on my account.” Castiel said softly before turning the volume up slightly and offering a sweet smile to Dean.

In response, Dean laughed before saying “well, you asked for it.” Castiel wondered what he meant though the answer came seconds later when Dean began to sing “Heat of the Moment” at the top of his lungs. Even Castiel began to join in towards the end.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There was going to be their 'date', not date at the end of this chapter, though that is instead going to be a smaller chapter which will hopefully be up soon.
> 
> Thank you for continuing to read! If you have any improvements that could be made, please enlighten me so I can create this to the best of my abilities.  
> Thank you!


	11. The Heat of the Moment showed in your eyes...

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dean and Castiel's mini possibly 'date', not quite there 'date'?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so this was only meant to be a small chapter, but somehow turned into four thousand words, sorry.
> 
> Also, it has occurred that today is 'Valentines Day', so on that note, I wish you all a happy 'Unattached Drifter Christmas'!

As they continued driving around the lanes, Dean sung along to the tapes playing whilst Castiel watched him in amazement, his hands shaking in the slightest on his lap, though he had not given this a second thought as he continued to be mesmerised by the sight ahead of him.

Dean would look to his left every so often to see Castiel sitting closely to the door, watching him so intently, the look of pure desire framed within his crystal eyes. Dean could not help the smile that had formed across his face as a blush grew over Castiel’s cheeks each time he would catch him staring, which Dean found this to be utterly adorable, the sight of this boy.

After having been driving through the town for a while, Dean finally stopped the car outside a small bar, the carpark was full of both cars and motorbikes whilst people were shouting and laughing outside the doors, some smoking, others drinking. Above the door there was a sign reading ‘The Roadhouse’. Castiel was in confusion as to why Dean would bring him to a place such as this, why Dean himself would visit this establishment.

As Dean opened his door, walking around the car, Castiel on the other hand was still looking at the bar in front of him, not having noticed the car stopping or Dean stepping out, that was not until he was standing right in front of Castiel, the car door opened and his hand extended towards the younger boy.

Gingerly, Castiel accepted the hand with a small, shy smile as he was pulled from his seat into an upright position, jumping slightly as the door was closed behind him. As Dean let go of Castiel’s hand, he immediately missed the warmth and comfort that Dean provided, the safety he had felt when he was in his presence.

Dean beckoned for Castiel to follow him as they made their way through the doors, numerous men shouting greetings to Dean as he replied fondly; it appeared he had in fact been to this location many times before. Though it was nice to see Dean in a location outside of the school in which he was happy and free, where he was not trying to impress others, though instead could be himself, Castiel found that he was rather fond of this new side he had seen.

“Dean Winchester!” Came the loud female voice, Dean’s head instantly snapped in the direction of the voice, his smile widening exponentially as he moved forward. Taking a moment to follow where Dean was moving, Castiel saw a small woman with brown hair flowing past her shoulders, wearing a blue plaid shirt over the top of a green t-shirt and jeans.

As Castiel watched the transaction in front of him, he saw the woman take a hold of Dean, bringing him into a tight hug, saying something that made him laugh loudly, a full stomach laugh as he returned the hug. As they slowly moved apart, the woman’s eyes drifted over to where Castiel was standing, the smile bright on her face as Castiel on the other hand shied away, looking down at the floor, absentmindedly rubbing his hand around his wrist.

She smiled at the bot in front of her, looking back over to Dean who was standing still, his eyes drawn on the boy in admiration, “And who might this be?” she asked Dean teasingly, snapping both boys out of their day dreams.

Smiling widely at Castiel, Dean turned back to the woman, “Ellen, this is Cas, Cas, this is Ellen.”  He said lengthening his arms between the two.

Castiel stuck his hand out politely yet somewhat awkwardly towards Ellen though she simply laughed, moving forward to pull Castiel into a small hug. Though he immediately stiffened at the touch, he began to relax slightly, looking over to Dean for consolidation, Dean who was simply standing with a large smile playing at his lips.

As Ellen finally pulled back, she looked between both boys, the smile growing on her face as she spoke, “Right, Dean, you go show him to your seats, you know what you’re eating?” she asked, directing the question between the boys.

Castiel looked to Dean to see what it was he should do next, Dean smiled with a glint as he said to Ellen, “two of the usual’s, extra onion rings, extra bacon and extra cream.”

Castiel looked back at Dean, confused as to what meal would include those three ingredients, though on their own the appeal was there, and well, things do taste good dipped in cream, so maybe this wouldn’t be the worst meal he had had.

Dean took a hold of Castiel’s hand, of whom flinched slightly at the foreign contact; Dean offered a reassuring smile as he slowly guided Castiel to the end of the bar and towards a small booth. Sitting in first, Castiel followed in tow, sitting opposite Dean on the bench, dusting the seat slightly, and taking the small napkin to wipe away the small stain of food in front of him. Even though this was not the cleanest he had seen, this was much cleaner than what Castiel had expected to see within an establishment such as this. He had expected broken bar stools, large, bearded, biker men creating commotion beside the pool table, older men to be falling off their stools drunk whilst young women wandered around.

Though none of this was seen; the bar stools, though old, were all fully functional, there were large men, large men with beards and tattoos within though many of them were happily joking with one another. Even zoning in on a few conversations, Castiel could hear that a number of the patrons were into hunting, there were many saying something about a large hunt in the East, dozens of creatures having appeared, there were a few other statements he had heard, though many he did not understand the meaning of.

Turning back to the table in front of him, he looked towards Dean who was watching him intensely, a smile over his face as he watched his blue eyes scanning the room.

Seeing Dean’s smile, Castiel reflectively shied away, his cheeks becoming hotter by the moment as he studied the condiment bottles strewn across the centre of the table. Slowly he reached his hands forward, forgetting those around him and spending time to centre each bottle in the correct position, all perfectly aligned with the labels facing the same way whilst being settled in their height order with a second row for the salt and pepper shakers.

Finally looking up, he saw that Dean was still watching him with interest, it made Castiel wonder whether he had been watching him this entire time, which then also brought Castiel to the realisation that he must have been sorting the bottles for some time. Meeting the green eyes, he mumbled a small apology whilst moving the ketchup bottle the slightest to the left in order to complete the arrangement.

“Cas, please, don’t ever apologise to me, you’ve done nothing wrong.” Dean said with such conviction Castiel looked back up to him, meeting his eyes once more.

Both boys must have been staring into the others eyes for a great length of time seeing as neither noticed Ellen walk up to their booth, nor notice that she was standing there with two plates and two drinks in her hands. It was only the sound of someone clearing their throat that finally brought them back to the present day; both boys looked over to Ellen who was standing with a smug grin on her face as she set the plates and cups on the table in front of them.

“There you go boys, just shout when you’re ready for desert.” She said giving Dean a knowing look as she looked to Castiel and then left them in peace.

Dean looked down to his plate, seemingly embarrassed at the fact that he thought he had been much better at keeping his affections hidden, though so far many people seemed to have commented on the longing looks he would share with Castiel, even Ellen who had barely me the guy.

Castiel smiled at Dean’s attempt to hide his blush, though in an attempt to ease Dean, he also looked down to his plate, where he was met with one of the most appealing burgers he had had through his young life. The bun looked firm, but not too much as though it would break once bitten into, nor that it would taste to bready, the burger looked juicy and succulent, above that Castiel could see the lettuce and bacon. Taking the top of the bun off, Castiel inspected the burger further, seeing that the burger itself appeared to be fairly circular, the lettuce was chopped in close proximity whilst being placed solely upon the burger, and then the bacon. The bacon was crispy yet not too crunchy that it would be uncomfortable to eat, though perfectly cooked and precisely positioned.

It was after having inspected each aspect of the burger that Castiel began on the onion rings, moving them around the plate to ensure they were each set together, in piles of three, creating a neat square in the right hand corner of the plate. After taking the mayonnaise bottle from in front of him, Castiel squeezed the amount to his liking, creating a pattern atop the bacon before replacing the bun atop the burger to the correct angle and pushing the bottle back into its designated space.

Dean continued to watch each of Castiel’s movements, seeing the boy so precise and angling each separate object, it was not something many around him did, though it served to take his fascination.

Finally deeming his meal fit, Castiel placed his fingers around the burger and slowly brought it up to his lips, opening his mouth and pushing it past his lips. Pushing his teeth down, Castiel took a large bite out of the burger, impressing Dean to the size of his bite.

It was then that Castiel lowered the burger back to the plate, a soft moan passing his lips as he chewed the piece of burger in his mouth.

Dean kept looking at him, his own burger completely forgotten whilst he sat mesmerised, though the moan he heard from Castiel caused his eyes to widen, slightly in disbelief, though also wondering to himself about those noises, how he would bring them out of him again, the things he would not say aloud that Castiel was doing to him, unknowingly on his behalf.

It was the deep sound of Castiel’s voice that brought him out of his daze, coming back to the present moment, his eyes once again fixed on the boy ahead of him. Castiel looked up to see Dean watching him so intently; he smiled brightly before saying “These make me… very happy!”

Upon hearing a soft chuckle from Dean, Castiel looked up, smiling shyly at Dean, hearing loud laughter from him as Dean sits on his side, looking to Castiel still.

“What is it?” Castiel asked before taking another large bite of his burger.

“You’ve got a little…” Dean said to Castiel, gesturing towards his own mouth with his finger.

Castiel flushed a light brush as he quickly swiped the back of his hand across his face, causing Dean to laugh harder as he had simply managed to smear the sauce further across his face. Slowly reaching over with a napkin in his hand, Dean set out wiping the sauce off of Castiel’s face before pulling back to his own seat, pushing a handful of onion rings into his mouth.

They both ate in a comfortable silence as Castiel devoured the burger in front of him, having found he was much hungrier than he had first thought.

As they both came to the end of their meals, Dean was the first to break the silence, “You like burgers I take it?” he asked with a soft smile.

“Oh not at all, I would much prefer a stick of celery, or some salad leaves, much more filling.” He laughed happily pushing an onion ring into his mouth.

“Oh, so he’s sarcastic too.” He said before reaching across the table “Well in that case, I couldn’t possibly force you to eat all of this food you so despise.” And with that, he stole two of Castiel’s onion rings before throwing them into his own mouth and chewing purposefully “Mmm, fat and oil!”

* * *

Their conversation carried on, discussing anything and everything that came to mind. Castiel had even taken bolder steps, before the evening had started, he could barely look at Dean without becoming flustered and silent, though now, now he was able to speak freely about anything he could. Learning so much about Dean; how his mother worked at the school whilst his father owned a garage of his own. Whilst Dean on the other hand learnt how Castiel had moved here with his four siblings, that his father had left when he was young, though as soon as Dean broached the subject of his mother, Castiel became cold and desolate so Dean quickly changed the subject to talk of films.

“Oh come on” Castiel said “you know Lord of the Rings is great.”

“That I agree.” Dean responded, “It really is though I don’t like the way they blamed Smaug for stealing the Arkenstone when he did not.”

“He slept on it for sixty years!”

“Yes, he _‘slept on it’,_ that does not mean he stole it, Thrór dropped the freakin’ stone in the gold at the moment Thorin pulled him back from Smaug!” Dean stated his voice raising whilst he tried to push his point across.

“Yes, but had Thorin not pulled his grandfather back, he would have gone in for the stone upon where either Smaug would have devoured or burnt him alive or he would have been locked within the Lonely Mountain until he died of starvation!” Castiel responded in kind, his hands moving greatly in front of his face to try and make Dean understand his point.

“That is completely off topic! And anyway, the dude still died, so what difference did it make. The point is; Smaug _did not_ steal the damn stone, they dropped it yet he cannot defend himself so that is the story they told everyone so that they would not have to learn the truth. The damn klutz dropped the freakin’ stone, Smaug didn’t steal it!”

Their heated debate was cut short as Ellen came back over to take their plates from the table whilst setting down two hot slices of pie in front of each boy and a can of whipped cream in the middle of them. “There you go boys.” She said fondly.

Dean thanks her shortly whilst Castiel offers both his thanks and compliments on the burger.

She laughs kindly before turning to Dean and saying in a hushed tone “I like this one.” Low enough that Castiel does not hear yet he does see the blush forming on Dean’ cheeks whilst he pushes the laughing woman away.

As Dean turned back to look at the smiling Castiel, he further confirms his decision that Castiel’s smile is the best thing he can see, knowing he needs to see this more often.

In an effort to further that smile, Dean pulls his pie towards himself before lowering his voice and saying gruffly “My precious!” Castiel smiled. “ _We wants it, we needs it. Must have the precious. They stole it from us. Sneaky little hobbitses. Wicked, tricksy, false!_ ” it was after that that Castiel could not keep his laughter at bag as a full stomach laugh erupted from his throat, making Dean laugh harder.

Taking the can of cream, Dean offered it to Castiel first who ungracefully took the can from him, freezing as their fingers grazed the others, even though there was undoubtedly a spark there, Castiel could not help but to foreshadow his discomfort over the touching.

Squirting a small amount of cream at the side of his pie, Castiel turned to offer Dean the can, though was met with a small shake of the head. “Come on dude, we have the can of cream, put as much as you want on. Ellen won’t care.” He said as he pushed the can back to Castiel with a bright smile who continued to press the tip of the can around the side of the pie in a circular motion.

Once he was happy with the amount of cream on his plate, Castiel returned the can to dean who took it and squeezed the remainder of the can across his pie, piling the plate full. With a bright grin, he took the spoon to his plate, looking back up to Castiel “The rock and pool, is nice and cool, so juicy sweet. Our only wish, to catch the pie, so juicy sweet! ” he sung loudly before pushing the mouthful into his face.

They continued to eat their pie once again in silence, though Dean kept looking over to Castiel to ensure he was okay, though mainly to make sure he was enjoying the pie as much as he himself was. Becoming thoroughly impressed with him as he ate the pie, carefully cutting the correct size, whilst watching Castiel work, Dean could not resist the urge to place a piece of pie on his own spoon before pulling the head back and letting the piece fly through the air as it expertly landed on Castiel’s nose.

With a startled jump, Castiel knocked his knees on the table in fear before realising the sticky substance he had been hit with was slowly sliding down his face. Bringing his pointer finger up, Castiel swiped some of the filling from the bridge of his nose before greedily bringing the finger to his lips and licking off the filling.

Dean watched on as this scene transpired before him, mesmerised that he did not notice Castiel had finished licking the filling off of his finger and was now setting his own piece of pie on his spoon, pulling back the head, he let go, almost missing Dean completely, though instead of hitting him in the face as he had planned, the piece of pie ended up hitting just below his ear instead.

As Dean looked to Castiel, shock evident on his face, Castiel simply replied, with a look of innocence. “I’m pretty sure it was the guy behind me.”

“You mean Joey?” Dean said looking past Castiel’s head before directing his attention to the boy in front of him, a smirk on his lips “No, he doesn’t like pie.”

“Well, that explains why he would throw it then.”

Dean laughed loudly, though whilst his head was thrown back, Castiel took the opportunity to push a piece of pie onto his fork before launching it into Dean’s open mouth.

“Mmm” Dean mocked, chewing the piece of pie in his mouth before looking back over to Castiel, “Wait, you got cherry?” he asked.

“Mhm” Castiel laughed bringing a piece of pie up to his lips.

“No, come on man, It’s only fair.” Dean said, motioning towards the piece of pie on the end of his fork. Castiel in response leaning back in his chair as he opened his mouth wide ready for Dean, his eyes still glistening with joy. Looking at this boy, no one would have guessed half of what had happened it him in that long night.

It was on that basis that Dean was determined to keep this train of thought, in so he smiled before taking the remains of the can of whipped cream from the middle of the table and squeezing it all into Castiel’s mouth before then taking the cherry from on his plate as the _piece de resistance._

Closing his mouth, Castiel looked back up to Dean, his cheeks puffed out and full of artificial cream to resemble that of a chipmunk, though a smile still evident on his face. In response to this, Dean pulled his ears out whilst showcasing his tongue for all to see, creating the most ridiculous face he could possibly muster.

Seeing this face, Castiel could not hold back the laughter any longer, after trying to swallow as much of the cream filling his mouth as possible, some still managed to trickle from the corners of his lips.

Without a second thought, Dean took the previously used napkin from in front of them, bringing it up to Castiel’s mouth to gently wipe away the remains of the cream from his lips. Castiel smiled at Dean, a soft, heart-warming smile that captured Dean’s attention, whilst he had said attention, Castiel smiled a mischievous smile before taking the plate of pie and pushing it straight into Dean’s face, smearing it as far as possible before pulling the now empty plate away. Laughing a hearty laugh at the expression on Dean’s face; partly confused and partly disgruntled at the sticky red substance now covering his face.

Though before either boy could say anything else, Ellen made her presence known by coughing loudly, meeting the startled, sticky faces of the boys in front of her. “You know” she started “if you didn’t like the pie, you could have just said.” She said with a soft laugh.

“No, we loved the pie!” Castiel stated in all honesty before thinking for a moment to then reply “You see, Dean was just complaining that his face did not feel softy enough, and you know what they say about the qualities in cherries.” He smiled brightly, extending his hand across the table to Dean’s face, pulling it in a downwards motion before looking back to Ellen, “See, so very soft already.” To then bring the pie filled finger up to his lips “Tastes good too.”

Ellen laughed loudly as she handed Dean a stack of napkins “Come on, clean your face. I’ll box you both a piece of pie to take home.” She smiled brightly as she made her way behind the bar, returning moments later with two small boxes, handing one to each boy. “Come on, you both better get going before your mothers begin to worry where you are so late at night.”

It was only then that Dean looked down to his phone “Shit Cas, it’s eleven, come on, we don’t want anyone worrying about you, and Charlie, she will kill me.” He laughed before getting out of the chair to give Ellen a hug, “Thank you Ellen, the pie really was great.” He smiled.

“Yeah, yeah, come on, get moving.” She laughed before leaning in close to Dean’s ear, “I like his effect on you.” She said honestly, moving over to Castiel who had just stood up to give him another warm hug before pushing them both towards the exit. “And don’t forget to come back soon you two!” she shouted.

* * *

Once they were beside the car, both made their way inside smiling “I think she likes you.” Dean joked.

“She seemed nice.” Castiel said, holding his pie box in the air as to prove his point.

Looking to Castiel, Dean looked as though his dog had just been hit. “I forgot my pie.” He said sadly.

Though before he had the moment to dwell on it, Castiel pushed the other box onto his lap, “Here” he said kindly, “I got yours too, Ellen said you would probably forget your head if it wasn’t connected to your body.” He laughed happily.

Dean on the other hand turned the car on whilst turning the music up and pulling out of the car park. They both sat in a comfortable silence for the journey home, Dean tapping on the steering wheel whilst he sang along to Metallica playing throughout the car whilst Castiel sat in his seat just watching him, and if Dean ever noticed his staring, he did not say anything of it, simply continued to sing happily, listening for Castiel who joined in on a few of the songs.

As they pulled up to Castiel’s house, Dean realised it was not that far from his own, turning off the engine before stepping out of the car and walking towards the passengers door. “Come on dude, I gotta make sure you get home safely.” He said with a small laugh, taking Castiel’s pie box from him as he stepped out of the car.

Walking slowly with him up to the door, both boys completely unaware of the three faces watching them from the windows in the house, they continued to talk about anything, Castiel laughing happily at a story Dean was reliving from his childhood, talking about one of his many ‘adventures’ with Sammy.

Once they had reached the door, Castiel is still laughing, something that Dean can only love to watch, though realised that he must head home before it is destroyed, though before walking back to his car, Dean looked to Castiel, both just standing silently for a few moments until the door is opened behind Castiel.

“You’re finally home then.” Michael said, feigning annoyance, though both Dean and Castiel could hear the affection and concern under his tone.

“I’ll see you Monday Cas.” Dean said, waving as he walked away.

* * *

Walking into the house, the events of the day had finally caught up to him, he was yawning loudly as his eyes began to droop, almost walking into a door until Gabriel helped him up the stairs where he promptly fell onto the soft bed, his eyes closing as soon as his head hit the pillow, though a large smile still on his face as he dreamt of that evening, the hours spent in the Roadhouse with Dean Winchester. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading again, and I hope you have all enjoyed this, hopefully it is finally getting to the good stuff.  
> If there are any improvements that can be made, please do share, I would love to hear your thoughts on what should happen next.
> 
> "Live long and prosper!"


	12. And now you find yourself in '82...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry this took so long to update, I kept losing my train of thought, so I am sorry that this chapter is not that good.   
> Either way, I hope you enjoy it.  
> As always, your kudos and comments are greatly appreciated. 
> 
> Thank you!

It had been a little over a month since Castiel had moved to Lawrence and begun school, after the party, he and Dean had spoken more, they would sit together in the classes they shared, walk to their next class together, Dean had even gone as far as to spend the day with Castiel when Charlie was not in. Their friendship after that night has blossomed, and Castiel could not help but fall for this beautiful green eyed boy, the boy he had seen care so dearly for his little brother when someone had beaten him. Had seen the look in his eye, similar to the way he would look at Azazel whenever their paths would cross.

Though the one thing he did not know was that these feelings were reciprocated to a similar degree on Dean’s side that he could not help but smile whenever he would see this blue eyed boy, the one that would always sit quietly in class, though when he laughed, it could instantly brighten any room. The way he would become so invested in whatever book he was reading that day that he would not even notice anything going on around him, even as people rushed past him, his eyes would not leave the page. It was all of this and everything else about the enigma that was Castiel Novak that attracted Dean so forcefully to him.

* * *

Coming into the month of November, Halloween had sine passed which for many including Dean Winchester had meant going to parties and getting drunk. Though as had been happening since the beginning of the school year, Charlie would always be around the Novak household, all of the siblings had become friendly with her, almost as though she was a second sister to them all, having even become close to Anna as she came back in the October break. They got on well, not as well as Castiel and Charlie, though no one seemed to fit that bill as well as the two did, they all spent the weekend at home; Michael, Lucifer, Anna, Gabriel, Castiel and Charlie, watching films, eating unhealthy food and sharing embarrassing childhood stories of one another.

They had spent that day after the party, all quizzing Castiel on who the boy was that had brought him home, even walked him to the door, then having a small meeting without Castiel, the five of them discussed their own personal feelings on the occasion, that they had all seen the way this by looked at Castiel, with Charlie trading stories of their encounters within School which settled it for them all.

Though as Anna left, she spoke with Michael and Lucifer about Castiel, seeing how this move was in fact the best thing that had happened to this family in a long time, feeling especially happy with the progress Castiel had made, thanking Charlie profoundly on her departure for bringing Castiel out of his metaphorical shell.

The house was slightly quieter with Anna gone, though they all had fun, Michael was still working at the hospital, he also was happier since they had moved, though he would not state this vocally, they all saw the spring in his step, and even though he now had the actual duty of caring for his three younger siblings, it was easier without their mother around. Though not vastly different on the basis that even before leaving, he and Lucifer would be forced to look after Anna, Gabriel and Castiel as their mother would hardly be home, though this way they had no boundaries and there was no chance of anyone getting hurt, they had personally seen to that. Lucifer had also gotten himself a new job, it was never something his mother had approved of and so he had never pursued as it was easier not to give her anything to go off on. Though after starting anew, he was able to pursue what it was he wanted; to begin working in a small cake shop in their town, waiting until he could save enough to run his own.Gabriel and Castiel were both doing well in their studies; Gabriel had become fairly popular around the school, known for his tricks and having been nicknamed ‘The Trickster’, this bode well for Castiel in theory that people knew who he was by association, though there was then also the downside that people knew who he was; he had never been one keen on much social interaction, skating by without being noticed, that was what he liked to do.

* * *

Their mother had tried contacting Michael once since they left; it was late at night, Michael was sitting at his desk finishing paperwork he needed for the next day when he received a call from an unknown number, hesitantly answering the phone, he heard the slurred speech he had so dreaded. The slurred speech on the other line indicated the caller to be none other than their mother, drunk as usual, saying how sorry she was it had ended this way, though Michael knew that to simply be the alcohol speaking, there was no way she would say such things. And through this, he had told her exactly what he thought, that he meant she would never see the others again and had put the phone down.

That number had never rung the house again, though he had told Lucifer of the call, they had both decided that it was best to keep it to themselves, no need for Gabriel, Anna or Castiel to know, not that they were likely to care much of her presence, though more the fact that they did not want to bring her up. They had hardly spoken about her since they had left the city, they did not mention what had happened there as none of the Novak children wanted to relive any memories, and so they had simply left her behind, something all had felt was the best move.

* * *

It was on a Monday that the two were sitting within their Law class, their teacher talking about the upcoming project, though Dean and Castiel were both settled into their own conversation though it was not until they heard their names being called that they looked away from the other to see their teacher looking at them expectantly and the rest of the class gaping. Castiel sat there, a small blush creeping up his cheeks at the way everyone was looking at him whilst Dean sat strong, his smirk across his lips, looking to their teacher in a similar fashion.

“Would you care to share what was so interesting that you both felt the need not to listen?”

“Pretty much everything else.” Dean said sarcastically, not batting an eye until he felt a sharp elbow hitting him in the side to turn to his side and see Castiel staring at him.

Though before Dean was able to say anything else, Castiel turned back to their teacher, saying a quick “Sorry miss.“ and pulling his attention towards his lap and away from the eyes of his classmates.

After a small “Hmf” from their teacher, she remained her talk in which neither Castiel nor Dean spoke, listening to what it was she was saying, though more so on Castiel’s behalf, Dean knew he could always ask him to paraphrase everything later.

“Right, so as I was saying, I have here numerous case files, they include statements from witnesses; the victim and the defendant, included are images and weapons that may have been used. They are all different cases, some murder, some theft, though each of you shall work with the person next to you to complete this project.”

Now Castiel was interested from the start, receiving the case files seemed good enough, though that he would have to work with Dean on this, he would have an excuse to see him outside of the school, to be able to get to know one another and who knows where this could lead. Sneaking a glance to the boy beside him, Castiel noticed that Dean was looking down to his phone in his hand rather than listening, and seeing as this would be an important project for their grades he nudged Dean gently in the side. “You may wish to listen about what the project will be on.” Castiel said quietly before averting his attention once more to the front of the class.

“In this, each group will have a different case, or side of the case. May that be for the defendant or the victim, and each will be trying to prove the innocence. I expect a written presentation, which will then be spoken in front of the class at the end of the semester, whoever wins their case will receive a prize.

“Now, this assignment will be worth 20% of your final grade, so make it count! And no excuses, if this is not finished by the deadline then you fail this portion.

“Any questions?” and that was the end of the lecture, a few hands shot up straight away, asking if they had to work with the person beside them and what help they were allowed, which Castiel listened to thoroughly, though his mind was still racing through the fact that he would be working with Dean for this throughout the entire semester, and this would be a lot of work they would have to do.

* * *

The bell rang signalling the end of the lesson, whilst a number of students stayed behind to ask questions on the project, the others left with their case files in hand.

Castiel picked the file off of the table, putting his bag on his back whilst Dean looked at him, before speaking “When d’ya wanna meet to do this then?” He asked with a small smile still on his lips. Though before Castiel had the chance to answer what he assumed was a question Dean continued on, “We could go to the Roadhouse after school and decide how we are gonna do it if you want, burgers are on me.” He said hopefully.

Castiel smiled to Dean “That would be good, we can create a schedule.” He said happily before pushing his chair in and following Dean towards the door.

“Great!” Dean said a little too enthusiastically, mentally kicking himself before regaining his composure “Okay, meet me by Baby.” He said before waving farewell to Castiel as they both made their separate ways.

* * *

The day as a whole seemed to drag unnaturally slow for Castiel, each lesson would seem to last longer than the last. Once their lunch break had finally arrived, Castiel mad his way outside to see Charlie waiting under their tree, her head in a book, not seeming to notice Castiel’s approach.

Sensing this, Castiel did what any decent human being would have done and snuck up behind the tree in question before quickly jumping out of the side, singing loudly about the Hobbits before jumping down to place his head in her lap, singing just as loud still. “They're taking the Hobbits to Isengard! They're taking the Hobbits to Isengard! They're taking the Hobbits to Isengard! They're taking the Hobbits to Isengard!”

Some time during the fourth or fifth verse, Charlie had joined in, voicing the other characters whilst Castiel stayed strong with Legolas. “Gard. Gard. Ga-gard. Gard.” She sang happily.

“They're taking the Hobbits to Isengard! They're taking the Hobbits to Isengard! They're taking the Hobbits to Isengard!” Castiel continued.

“What did you say?” Charlie mimicked in her best Gollum impression.

“The hobbits, the hobbits, the hobbits, the hobbits.”

“To Isengard! To Isengard!”

By this point, Castiel had sat up to continue his singing, both Charlie and he facing one another, legs crossed and arms in their laps, faces straighter than one might expect in this situation.

“Tell me, where is Gandalf, for I much desire to speak with him. Tell me, where is Gandalf, for I much desire to speak with him.” Charlie again mimicked the tone of Celeborn.

“A ballrog of Morgoth” Castiel spoke.

“What did you say?” Came Charlie’s reply.

This carried on throughout the entirety of their performance until Charlie gave the final line “Leave now, and never come back!” in her strongest Gollum voice, only to be followed by both slowly reciting the word “Back” until their voices could no longer be heard.

The pair roared with laughter, uncaring if those around them that may have seen them, for Castiel this was new, he was so happy at this moment, Charlie did not even think to question his happiness, though rather to board the same metaphorical train a and sing contently.

Throughout this performance, neither party seemed to have noticed the arrival of the pair sitting at the table opposite them. Usually the group would be slightly larger, though today it was just the two of them looking on with deep fondness at those sitting below the tree. Jo on one hand had a sly grin on her face with her phone held up to record them, laughing lightly at the redhead who had so simply joined in after regaining her composure. Dean on the other hand was still marvelled by the blue eyes so happily singing away, to remember their plans for this evening and smile wider.

Once the pair had finally stopped, Dean and Jo both turned to one another before clapping loudly, with Jo going so far as to let out a small whistle and a wink in Charlie’s direction whose face quickly turned a similar shade to her hair.

“I don't have any roses for that _beautiful_ performance” Dean said before moving from the table to crouch by the ground close to them.

“My lady” he said handing a small bouquet of daisies and grass to Charlie before turning to Castiel with a similar arrangement and a fond “good sir.”

Castiel all but beamed looking down at his ‘bouquet’ before noticing the singular blue flour in the middle, he looked up to catch Dean’s eye who chose that moment to offer a not so subtle wink, causing Castiel’s cheeks to burn and both girls to giggle lightly, Charlie nudging Castiel in the ribs before she turned to speak to Jo.

Cautiously looking back up at Dean, Castiel saw him smiling at him still before looking over to the girls, to see them emerged in conversation and moving over to sit beside Castiel.

After a moments silence, Castiel pulled a packet out of his pocket before offering it to Dean happily asking “Blueberry?”   against odds that he may sense the reference there.

Dean laughed, taking a handful of blueberries out of the packet, placing one in his mouth to look back at a gleaming Castiel. They stayed emerged in a comfortable silence together for a while, just looking at one another, and occasionally taking a blueberry from the packet now sitting on the grass between them.

It was only when a female voice broke the silence did they return from their state to hear Charlie saying “Well, I hate to break up the riveting conversation you two are having, but it appears lunch is over.” looking up, they both saw that she was now standing beside Jo who had her arm around her waist.

* * *

As the end of the day was in sight, Charlie and Castiel sat in the back of their final class, loosely taking down odd notes and continuing their conversation, waiting for the day to finally finish.

“So, you and Jo then?” Castiel asked with a small nudge to Charlie’s ribs.

“Yeah, me and Jo, we have a date tonight.” She said happily, turning her body to fully face Castiel before continuing; “what about you and Dean then? And why do you have a blue flower sticking out of your pocket?!” She asked with a grin as she gently plucked the aforementioned flower from his pocket.

“Nothing is going on between us, we have a project to do, and this is the easiest way to do that.” He said simply “And that flower… I like the colour.” He finished weakly, failing miserably to hide he blush creeping up his cheeks.

“Mmhm, of course” she replied, laughing softly before returning the flower to his pocket as the bell rung throughout the school to signify the end of the day. 

At that point, the classroom was swarming with the sound of chairs being pushed back and bags being packed whilst others took this time to escape the confines of the room and make their way out. Within this space, Charlie pulled Castiel to his feet as they both slowly made their way towards the door.

* * *

Charlie waited with Castiel outside of the s hoop whilst they located the sleek black car. Standing beside the car after they had located it, Castiel and Charlie continued to wait, taking happily between themselves, Charlie telling Castiel exactly what she was doing that evening, and what exactly she was hoping to happen, stating that with a wink and a judge as they both began to laugh.

“You ready Cas?” Came the deep voice from behind them, startling both as they looked around dumbly before locating Jo and Dean.

Charlie smiled at Castiel, whispering a quick “good luck!” And a hug before making her way to stand beside Jo and lightly taking a hold of her hand as she asked “ready?”

It was then Jo who responded by placing a soft kiss to Charlie’s lips, with both shouting “Bye!” as they made their way towards the busses.

Once the couple were out of sight, Dean turned to look at Castiel, taking in hisD blue eyes before saying “just gotta wait for Sammy, the little nerd had to bring his science project today and made me give him a lift.” He laughed fondly.

Only moment later, Dean broke the comfortable silence that had fallen between the two to announce Sam’s arrival “and there's my little nerd!” He shouted running over to Sammy with slight mockery, though one could not miss the fondness in his tone, the way he would easily protect this boy to his last breath, something Castiel deeply admired about him.

Castiel smiled softly as the brothers made their way back to the car, moving to open the door behind the drivers seat, he was suddenly stopped by a hand on the door, looking back to see Dean’s dazzling green eyes “come on Cas, you can sit shotgun.

“Are… Are you sure? I wouldn't want to impose!” He stumbled awkwardly.

“This is Cas?!” Came the reply breaking them from their silence again.

Dean turned around, slightly flushed, “yes, this is Cas; now shut your pie hole or I'm making you walk home!” Dean threatened lightly, only serving to make Sam smile wider at the whole situation.

Slowly, they all made their way into the car as Dean then proceeded to drive them out of the school car park.

After a few minutes if silence, Dean looked into the mirror to see Sam looking at him with a smug grin on his dace, though before he could say anything, Sam had already broken the silence. “So Cas, it's great to finally meet you, Dean has told me _all about you.”_ He said causing Dean to groan inwardly as a blush spread across his face, vowing not to look at either of them.

“And I you, Dean always speaks… fondly of you” he said after a moments hesitation.  It was at this point that Dean laughed loudly, turning on the radio and tapping on the wheel as Bon Jovi began to blast through the car.

The journey was not silent, Sam seemed to be interested in Castiel, asking every which question, from his family to his future aspirations, and when Castiel told Sam that he wished to be a lawyer, Dean could see his little brothers face light up. It was then that the questions stayed within the one subject, Sam wanted to know exactly how Castiel planned to go through with his choice, why…

When they finally made it back to the house after Sam had thoroughly quizzed Castiel and made many subtle remarks Sam made his way out of the car, Dean shouted to him “Tell mum and dad I'm working on my assignment.”

“Yeah, and what assignment would that be. People don't count as assignments Dean.” Sam laughed whilst Castiel sat in his seat listening lightly to their conversation.

“Shut your pie hole or I'm gonna cut off your hair while you sleep!” Dean threatened.

“Jerk.” Was Sam’s simple response to his brother’s empty threat.

“Bitch.” Dean shouted before turning back to look at Castiel, “you ready to go?” He asked as they heard the front door shut with a ‘bang’.

“Of course.” Castiel said with a smile as they began to pull out of the drive way and towards the Roadhouse once again.

Once they were through the doors, Ellen was beside them, pulling Castiel into a warm hug with Dean before pushing them in the direction of a free table with the promise of burgers, drinks and pie.

After a short wait, the drinks were in front of them, and they were discussing the best days to meet. Dean offered to drive to Castiel’s house and they could do the work considering he usually helps his father after school and Castiel cannot drive.

By the time their burgers came to the table, they had settled on meeting at five o'clock on Mondays Wednesday's and Thursday's, and that Castiel would offer food, something Dean had immediately jumped at.

Once the burgers had been eaten, Ellen was back with a piece of pie for each boy and a laminated piece of paper with ‘How to eat pie.’ Written thickly across the Middle. The top image showed a man in his mid twenties tucking into a piece of pie, the fork poised at his open mouth and beside the image was a small green tick. Below the writing, there was a different image, that immediately caught both boys attention; it was of them, the last time they had been there. They were big sitting opposite one another, huge grins covering their faces, pie over the rest, some blue and some red whilst Castiel held his fork back looking as though he were about to fling another piece towards the laughing boy.

Once they had both finished eating their pie, _properly_ this time, the plates were pushed to one side as the file was opened and spread out between them, each looking at a different segment hiker they tried to learn the facts of the case at hand.

From what they had gathered, this was a case depicting (r v smith 1959) the death of a soldier; the victim had been stabbed though on the way to the hospital he was dropped and received treatment that only served to make him worse resulting in his death.

After talking over the case for a while, they lacked the file away, and made their way back towards the car and driving back to Castiel’s home once more.

Once they were outside the Novak residence, Dean turned off the engine as he carried the case file and walked Castiel up to the door of his home, though before Castiel had a chance to thank Dean, the door swung open and. Boy stepped out.

“Mr. Winchester, this is the second time you have courted my sweet, young brother here, should we prepare for a proposal any time soon?” He asked with a serious look on his face, though a mischievous glint in his eyes.

“Gabriel, shut up!” Castiel scolded as his face reddened before looking at Dean “Dean, this is my brother-“he started before he was interrupted by Gabriel’s happy tone.

“Favourite brother!” He corrected.

“This is Gabriel” Castiel said as he pushed the previously mentioned brother slightly.

Gabriel though, seemed completely unaffected and instead stuck his hand out towards Dean, “Nice to finally be able to put a name to the face.” He laughed winking lightly at Castiel.

After an overly long handshake, Gabriel finally let go of Dean’s hand before saying “you got a strong grip there.” Then looking over to Castiel “seems your man will be good for something” he laughed loudly before running inside, putting the space between them before Castiel could hit him again.

“I'm sorry about Gabriel.” Castiel said eventually as he looked up from his feet to see Dean smiling that beautiful warm smile at him.

“Nah, don't be sorry. He seems… energetic?” Dean said with a soft laugh before looking down at his phone. “Shit, I better get goin’, make sure Sammy doesn't set anything on fire again.” He said before making his way back to the car and driving out of the path, waving farewell to Castiel as he went.

* * *

Castiel quietly made his way into the house as to not ask arouse the attention of his brothers, though his efforts were to no avail as he was intersected by an overly excited Gabriel, shooing him into the living room.

“Have you had your tea?” Michael asked looking at the clock to see it as just passed nine.

“Yes thank you, we had burgers whilst we were there.”

“And where exactly would _there_ be? And it had better not have been a sleazy motel. Any boy that is courting my brother had better have a different plan.” Michael said.

“No one was courted and there was no motel. Dean and I have a project to complete and we were discussing how we would go around it and what our arguments would be based on. That is it.” Castiel said defiantly.

“Cassie, people don't count as projects.” Gabriel laughed.

At that comment, Castiel was temporarily confused, “That is what Dean's brother said.” Castiel mentioned as he tipped his head to the side trying to figure out why his three brothers were sitting in hysterics.

Rather than to try and reason with them, Castiel took his moment that they were all preoccupied to make his escape, picking his bag up from the door as he ran silently through the house and up to his room, closing the door behind him and throwing his bag onto the hair, with his coat on top of that.

After having lay back on the bed, it was only then that he saw g small blue flower sticking out of his trench coat pocket. Slowly getting up, he removed the flower before placing it into a small glass of water on his desk, admiring the beauty of the flower, the way each petal had a different pattern to it, even though one of the petals was half broken it was still a beautiful flower in all. That alone made him smile; thinking how that alone could be translated into an everyday thought. So much so that he took his phone out to take a picture of the flower before posting that and his small analysis on his blog.  

* * *

After a quick shower and brushing his teeth, Castiel fell back onto his bed falling asleep almost instantly, with dreams of blue flowers and green eyes roaming the sun filled fields as happy laughter and the scent of cherry pie filled the air.


	13. The disco hotspots hold no charm for you...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I would like to firstly apologise if this sucks, I could not really think of how to take it where I wanted it, and it just kept, well it would not go right.
> 
> Secondly, there may be a few grammatical errors throughout, I do not read over my work, that just makes me hate it more, so if does not make that much sense to some parts, that may be why.
> 
> Though I hope you enjoy it, thank you for reading!

As the school day drew to a close that sunny Wednesday afternoon, Castiel foundhimself walking to the bus with his headphones in and music playing loudly. It turned out that Charlie would not be on the bus this afternoon, and although that had freaked him out throughout the majority of the day, being one of the first students to the bus he was able to easily board into their usual seat, pushing over to the window and placing his bag onto the empty seat beside him as to discourage others from sitting there.

In all, the journey went surprisingly well. He kept his headphones in and his head in a book with no one giving him a second glance. And when they finally got to his stop, Castiel jumped off the bus and began a slow walk home, admiring the scenery around him.

Once back into the house, he was met with silence. Michael and Lucifer were both at work still and Gabriel, well he was probably out somewhere with friends or purchasing more sugar   Either way, Castiel had the house to himself, at least an hour if Gabriel is at the shops, he never was one to rush when it came to candy or anything sweet. 

Taking full advantage of being alone, Castiel made his way up to his room, putting his bag on the chair in front of his desk and taking out a pair of pyjama bottoms. Taking his phone and bottoms with him, Castiel took a long shower, the music playing throughout the room as he sung along contently.

Once dry, Castiel redressed in a loose fitting black top and a pair of marvel pyjama bottoms with his hair still damp and sticking up every which way. Unfazed by this, he simply put the dirty clothes and towel into the basket before making his way downstairs with both his phone and the washing basket.

After chasing set the clothes to wash, Castiel then moved into the kitchen, taking the brush to sweep the dirt from the floor to begin with before his feet were covered in dust and small pieces of food.  After disposing of the waste, he then made his way to the sink, taking out a large pair of yellow washing up gloves and placing them on his hands and his phone into the windowsill, though not before pressing play on the cleaning playlist he had created prior to this moment.

Before long, the kitchen was full of the sound of random songs blasting through, the sound of water pouring into the sink and the smell of cleaning liquid.

Castiel spent the next hour alone singing along loudly to each song paying whilst cleaning each surface until Gabriel returned home, sure enough with a large bag of candy.

“Cleaning again Cas?” He asked kindly as he set the bag on the counter before having it thrust back into his arms.

“Yes I am, but the side is clean so please don't put your bag down there.” He replied never once taking his eyes from the stain he was tying his hardest to remove.

Gabriel smiled down at his brother before moving out of the way to give him enough space and without ruining his work so far. Making his way through the cupboard, Gabriel let out a heavy sigh not being able to find the bowl he was looking for, though as if Castiel had read his mind, he shouted back to him over the music “it's in the draw to your left, alongside several bags of sweets, three bars of chocolate and a bottle of syrup.” Again not taking his eyes away from the new spot he was cleaning.

Although Gabriel had always thought his brothers cleaning to seem slightly excessive, he never questioned him on it. In fact it worked better for everyone that way; Castiel was happy cleaning and was able to turn point out each item’s specific place.

“What would I do without you Cas.” Gabriel replied once he had filled his bowl, moving over beside Castiel to offer him a dip from the sugary mixture below.

Castiel smiles back, removing one of his gloves before taking three orange smarties from the bowl and placing them into his mouth with a stupidly happy grin that Gabriel could not help but to reciprocate.

Though before walking out of the kitchen to leave Castiel to his cleaning, Gabriel took out another smaller bowl to place the remainder of the orange smarties in, pushing it in front of Castiel who smiles gratefully back at his brother to then finish his cleaning.

* * *

As one episode came to a close, Gabriel continued watching the television, waiting for the next to begin to see the trademark boots of Doctor Sexy, his peace was disrupted by the ringing of the doorbell. Listening for a moment, Gabriel smiled to himself with being able to hear his baby brother singing loudly to whatever song was playing now though his happiness was soon cut short as the doorbell rung through the house once again.

It was then that he peeled himself from his spot on the sofa, placing the now empty bowl back onto the table alongside his bottle of pop, realising Castiel was not going to answer the door and that the infernal ringing would not stop unless he went to answer it.

“Alright, alright, keep your panties on!” he shouted as he began to make his way through the hall.

With an overly dramatic sigh that Castiel would have mocked were he there, Gabriel opened the large wooden door, revising numerous comebacks to whatever this person might be trying to preach or sell. Though rather than being met with a young girl in a colourful uniform, there was instead a boy looking back at him with deep green eyes, torn jeans, a blue flannel shirt and a backpack slung over his shoulder.

“You're not a girl scout.” Was the first thing Gabriel said to a slightly confused looking boy in front of him who was now tilting his head to the side lightly, reminding him greatly of Castiel.

“You don’t say.” Came the deep response from the boy.

“Well if you’re not here to sell me cookies and I presume you do not stand here to represent our local religious affiliations, then why is Dean Winchester of all people at my house on a Wednesday evening?” he asked as he leant back against the doorframe, pulling a deep red Twizzler seemingly out of nowhere yet never once taking his eyes off of the green eyed boy.

“I’m here for Cas.” He said hesitantly, stepping back slightly as Gabriel pulled the sugary stick away from his lips which were forming a deep smirk as his eyes lit up.

“You know Dean-o; you can either keep showing up at our home like a lost puppy, or just ask Cassie out like a normal person.” Gabriel said happily as he took another bite of the red sugary stick, laughing loudly at the deep red blush blossoming across Dean’s cheeks.

“I-no, I… we have a project.” Dean finally stammered out, the colour still deep in his cheeks.

“Uh-huh, whatever you say Deanie.” Gabriel laughed as he stepped aside allowing Dean into their home.

Dean followed Gabriel in, toeing his shoes off as he closed the door behind himself.

“He’s in the kitchen.” Gabriel said as he began to lead Dean down through a hallway and towards the door that loud music was resonating from within.

As Gabriel stopped in the doorframe, Dean came to stand beside him, looking in to see what had brought such a loving, caring and adoring smile to this ball of sarcasm’s lips, only to be met with the sight of the young blue eyed boy singing and dancing around the kitchen in his pyjama bottoms to Bon Jovi.

* * *

“I’m wanted dead or alive. Wanted dead or alive.” he sang loudly as he swept through the kitchen in feather light movements, dragging a damp cloth across each surface before throwing it into the sink and picking up a dry towel to wipe over each surface he had washed. “I’m a cowboy, I got the night on my side, I’m wanted dead or alive. And I ride, dead or alive. I still drive, dead or alive. Dead or alive!”

Standing back to admire his work, he smiled to himself at the spotless surface, folding and placing the towel on the countertop in favour for the broom beside him.

Picking up the broom as the next song began, Castiel began singing again as he flew around the kitchen floor, sweeping every inch the broom would reach. “Leaves are falling all around, it’s time I was on my way. Thanks to you, I’m much obliged for such a pleasant stay. But now it’s time for me to go. The autumn moon lights my way. For now I smell the rain, and with it pain, and it’s headed my way. Sometimes I grow so tired, but I know I’ve got one thing I got to do…”

Castiel continued to sweep as he sang along, each area of the kitchen gaining specific attention whilst pushing it into a small pan ready to put the dust and dirt into the bin. “Mine’s a tale that can’t be told, my freedom I hold dear. How years ago in days of old, when magic filled the air. T’was in the darkest depths of Mordor, I met a girl so fair. But Gollum, the evil one crept up and slipped away with her, her, her… yeah.”

It wasn’t until he had finished sweeping and was moving to place the broom back in its rightful place that he noticed the two smiling faces staring over at him. Though these were not the same teasing and mocking smiles he had become accustomed to, these were instead both warm, adoring smiles. Gabriel on one hand was looking straight at him with the kind loving smile he always reserved for his baby brother. Though Dean on the other hand looked completely shocked, and although his smile reached each corner of his mouth, he and Castiel continued to stare at one another with Castiel offering a small, sheepish smile in return.

 They were only brought out of their daze by the sound of someone coughing, both looking over to see Gabriel looking at them followed by a childish giggle as he skipped from the room shouting “Use protection!” which made both Castiel and Dean let out low groans of embarrassment as they looked back to one another.

“I’m sorry.” Castiel said eventually. “I completely forgot you were coming over or I would have had food ready or something.” He said a little sheepishly, playing with the hem of his shirt.

“No worries.“ Dean said as he pulled a sealed put of his backpack causing Castiel to laugh softly in response.

“I take it you like pie then.” Castiel said after a moment’s silence.

“I love me some pie!” he said enthusiastically as Castiel moved around him to grab his phone, turning the music off.

“Do you want a drink?” Castiel asked as he took a glass from the cupboard behind him and filled it with orange before placing a thin green straw into it and turning back to look at Dean.

 “No thanks.” He said looking around at the evenly spaced items around him. “You got any forks?” he asked as he placed the pie on the countertop.

“Draw to your left.” Castiel answered as he refiled his glass.

Once the pair had their drinks and pie in their hands, they made their way up the stairs as Castiel led them into his room, closing the door behind them.

“How do you wanna do this then?” Dean asked as he out his bag on the floor following Castiel onto his bed as they sat side by side spreading the files out in front of them.

“I looked over the files briefly last night and it doesn’t look too complicated. I thought to start with we would find the appropriate areas if law and then any similar cases to this that we can use to back up our argument.” Castiel said as he out his laptop on the end of the bed so that it was easily accessible to both.

* * *

 After an hour of research, half a pie and three separate interruptions from Gabriel trying to ‘catch them in the act’ the two finally put their papers down, falling back softly against the pillows.

“Can we take a break now?” Dean asked with a soft smile as he turned on his side slightly to see Castiel’s soft baby blue eyes staring straight back at him with a smile on his lips that just warmed Dean’s heart to see. Wanting nothing more than to be able to move forward through the last few inches of space, to be able to feel the soft, arm press of Castiel’s lips against his own.

Though in the next moment those lips were gone from his view, as was the entirety of the boy who was now crouching down on the ground before turning back to look at Dean, “We could watch a film.” He offered as he pressed a few plugs and buttons until the small television came to life.

“Okay.” Dean said as he got up to sit next to the blue eyed boy, looking at the mountain of DVDs in front of them.

“What do you wanna watch?” he asked as Castiel’s eyes skimmed the numerous titles all lined in alphabetical order, before landing on a dark blue case with white writing . He pulled the case from below the others being sure that none moved out of their places before handing it over to Dean with a bright, hopeful smile.

“Captain America?” Dean asked as he examined the case.

“And the Winter Soldier.” Castiel supplied gleefully, taking he case out of Dean’s extended hand. “Have you seen it yet?” he asked, looking up to see Dean’s deep gaze trained on him.

“Not yet.” He replied with a gentle smile “but I want to.” Dean could not help but let a low chuckle escape his lips at the sound Castiel made. It was close to a squeal, not even a manly squeal but he would be damned if that was not the cutest noise he had Hurd all day.

After a moments silence, Castiel jumped up without warning causing Dean to fall back slightly in shock.

Once Castiel had removed the disk from its case and pushed it into the slot in the television, both he and Dean crawled their way back onto the bed, pulling cushions up behind themselves until both were comfortable in their positions.

As Castiel pressed play on the remote, Dean pulled the pie in front of them both, passing Castiel his own fork as he began to dig into the remaining half of the pie.

They were quiet throughout the majority of the film other than Castiel prodding Dean lightly to tell him something about the scene that just played out in front of them or something that is coming up soon. Dean was happy to listen to everything Castiel was saying, to watch him as he animatedly explained in such exact detail every piece they we're seeing. It was nice to be able to watch this together, not to have to think about working just to watch the film.

Though half way through the film, Dean realised that Castiel had not been speaking for the past ten minutes at least. Looking to his left, he saw Castiel, his eyes closed softly with small strands of hair sticking in his face.  Dean just lay there for a few minutes, watching Castiel sleep, how peaceful he looked like this, so innocent, as though nothing would hurt him. It was in that moment that Dean made a promise to both himself and to Castiel that no one would again hurt him, not whilst Dean had anything to say about it.

Turning his attention back to the film, Dean lay there watching as Captain America ran around the screen in search of the Winter Soldier. He continued watching until he felt his son eyes begin to droop, the lob day finally catching up with him as he was pulled to sleep listening to the soft snores and breath escaping Castiel’s lips as he hurried himself into Dean’s side with Dean half asleep slinging his arm around Castiel’s waist as a sense of security. 

* * *

Castiel woke up to the soft sound of laughter from somewhere and warmth surging through his body. He hurried himself further into the warmth, trying to pull the blanket further up to cover the cold draft blowing over his neck. It was at that moment that a soft groan came from behind him, he groggily opened his eyes, looking down to see an arm tightly wrapped around his waist.

His eyes opened wide as he realised he was not alone in his bed, though rather someone was there with him. Slowly and gently, Castiel turned his body around to catch a glimpse of whoever was there.

His eyes grew wide as he saw the unmistakable array of freckles and soft sandy blonde hair covering his face. Castiel lay there watching the boy as he slept, how soft his face looked; his deep pink lips parted slightly as his breath escaped sending a small breath of Waltham onto Castiel’s face with the scent of cherry pie. The small scar stretching across the bridge of his nose, only a thin white line that is hardly recognisable unless close up, the way his eyelids would clutter every so often.

Castiel’s breath caught in his throat as those eyelids began to part showing a glimpse of green staring straight back into blue, his sorts lips for it a soft smile as he looked straight into those blue eyes.

“Good morning.” Dean said finally after they had both lay there staring at one another, not even bothering to notice, let alone move the arm over Castiel’s waist or how close together they were.

Castiel smiled back at Dean though before he had the chance to reply, another's voice rang through the room “it's actually the evening princess.”

Both boys quickly looked away from one another and towards the door to see not one but all three of Castiel’s brothers standing there looking straight back at them both with smug grins across their faces.

“Tea’s downstairs if you want some.” Michael said as he began to leave.

Though before he had left Lucifer cut in “that is if you two can let go of one another long enough.” He laughed and with that they all left the boys in peace to look back to one another.

It was only after Castiel’s brothers had left the room and the two red faced boys looked back to one another that Dean noticed his arm slung around Castiel’s waist. “Sorry.” He mumbled as he pushed that hand through his hair, rubbing gently at the back of his neck. 

Castiel smiled shyly back at Dean before swinging his legs off of the bed and looking back to the still sat Dean. “No, don’t be sorry, that was one of the best naps I have had in a while.” He laughed before walking around the bed and towards Dean who was still slightly pink. “Come on, I’m hungry.” Castiel said happily as he pulled on Dean’s hand to bring him to a standing position before dragging him towards the door.

Dean laughed softly as they walked down the hall, not having noticed that Castiel still had a hold on his wrist whilst they walked, sharing conversation, mainly on Castiel’s part talking about the Winter Soldier which they had missed the majority of.

“Well there they are!” Came the high pitched squeal from the living room where Gabriel, Michael and Lucifer were all sitting looking through the door and at Castiel and Dean.

“Foods in the kitchen!” Michael shouted as he and Lucifer turned their attentions back to the television continuing to eat their meals whilst Gabriel sat gaping at the two.

Castiel smiled at his brothers, thanking them before he pulled Dean on after him and towards the kitchen where two plates were set on the countertop and a pan of chilli with another of rice both on the stove still arming through slightly.

Castiel made his way over towards the stove as he piled some rice and then chilli onto his own square plate, placing it on the surface before looking over to Dean with a smile on his face. “How much do you want?” He asked as he brushed past Dean, their shoulders barely touching as he grabbed the plate from behind Dean and moving back to the stove and placing the plate beside it.

Castiel looked at Dean with a pointed expression until he got the point.

“Just shove it on, whatever’s fine.” Dean said as he moved over to stand beside Castiel, taking two glasses from the cupboard and filling them with orange, placing the second beside Castiel’s plate.

“Come on dude, let’s eat.” Dean said happily as he pulled his plate out passing cutlery to each and taking his glass whilst both walked towards the living room, sitting onto the soda opposite his brothers.

* * *

All five ate their chilli in silence with only the television providing any sound to the room whilst Castiel and Dean sat shoulder to shoulder, closer than they would have been expected to. Though neither Castiel nor Dean saw realised how close they were sitting, whilst Gabriel, Michael and Lucifer did not fail to notice this fact, especially how their knees would touch all the time, with their eyes landing on one another and when they caught their stares they would both smile shyly at the other before turning their attention back to their meals and the television.

“This tastes good, you make it?” Dean asked eventually, breaking the silence as he directed his attention from the television towards Castiel’s brothers. All of whom looked over towards Dean as he spoke.

“Yes, I did.” Lucifer said as he pushed his plate onto the table and turned his full body to face Dean.

“’s good.” He said happily around his mouthful as Castiel smiled down to himself, the way Dean seemed to be comfortable around his brothers, or that this was simply his natural meaner, either way the way everyone was around one another was very comforting to him.

As Castiel looked over to Lucifer, he saw a small smile cross his face that he knew he would never admit to having granted cross his face. Though once he saw Castiel looking at him, he offered a small smile and slight nod of the head. “Well, if you like my cooking, you are welcome to come back any time.” He said directing his attention back to Dean.

“I will definitely take you up on that offer.” Dean laughed as he looked back to Castiel, saying “See that, you get to see my beautiful face all the damn time!” with a warm smile across his lips.

This caused both Castiel and all of his brothers to laugh as they saw the completely honest look upon Dean’s face, though the one thing Castiel failed to notice that his brothers did not was the look of hope in his eyes as he said these words.

Once they had all finished eating their meals, Michael and Lucifer stood to take their plates in whilst both Castiel and Gabriel looked at them with large, puppy dog eyes, holding their own empty plates towards their brothers before they could escape with Castiel then pushing Dean’s plate forward also.

“You guys want desert too?” Michael asked before they left the room.

Castiel and Gabriel both shared a look before they simultaneously turned to their brothers chanting “Ice cream, ice cream, ice cream!” in unison whilst Dean laughed with Castiel.

“I want sprinkles!” Gabriel shouted whilst Castiel leant back against Dean’s side.

“You want some?” He asked looking back at Dean who was still smiling brightly.

“Sure.” He replied whilst he moved his back slightly to make Castiel as comfortable as possible.

“Three ice creams please!” Castiel shouted as he continued to wriggle in his seat until he found his comfiest position with Dean’s arm slung across the back of the seat with Castiel buried into his side.

“Is that everything sir, or shall I find thee a thrown to sit thou’s regale backside upon.” Lucifer mocked upon seeing Castiel’s new position. “We can find matching thrones for you and your _boyfriend_.”

In retaliation, Castiel simply stuck his tongue out at his brother, laughing all the while.

* * *

Throughout the course of the evening, Castiel and Dean simply ended up sitting closer and closer until he was practically sitting in Dean’s lap. They all watched another film together, this time Lucifer’s choosing of ‘Poseidon’, whilst eating bowls of ice cream and enjoying one another’s company for the rest of the night.

It wasn’t until the film had finished and the clock struck ten that Dean was suddenly reminded that all had either work or school the next morning whilst Dean had a family to return home to.

Once again, Castiel walked Dean to the door where they stood talking for a while until Gabriel came along to push them on the way, making remarks that Dean could see his boyfriend tomorrow.

While beforehand both Castiel and Dean had reprimanded those that would call them ‘Boyfriends’, it now seemed that neither were noticing these simple mistakes, and were no longer correcting people.

That night Castiel slept dreaming about ice cream, green eyes and terrorist organisations, and in honesty it was one of the best night’s sleep he had had all week, waking the following morning to the chirping of the birds and sunlight shining through the open curtains, flooding into his room.

Taking the bus in the morning and smiling back to Dean who was sitting in the back of the vehicle whilst Charlie looked at them both curiously. Both sitting beside one another in their shared classes and shamelessly staring when they thought the other was not looking.


	14. You can't concern yourself with bigger things...

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Dean and Castiel continue their project together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so I am quite proud that this only took a few days to complete, and that it has been up quicker than any of the other chapters I have written.
> 
> Though I also really hope you enjoy it!
> 
> Thank you for reading, and as always your comments, bookmarks and kudos' mean everything. Thank you!

As Saturday came into view, both Castiel and Dean were sitting in Castiel’s room, Castiel was looking at his laptop, reviewing an old case with the similar facts to theirs whilst Dean lay across the bed on his back kicking his bare feet up against the wall opposite him.

“I’m bored!” Dean said as he rolled onto his stomach facing Castiel who still had his face in what was now a law report of 1991.

“We haven’t been here that long.” He said never once taking his eyes off of the pages.

“Cas…” Dean drew out the name as far as he could.

“Just pick up a book, or Google something, you are bored because you are not doing anything, if you were doing something you would not be bored... so do something.” Castiel said as he threw a stack of papers on Dean’s stomach resulting in an ‘oof’ sound from Dean as the wind was knocked out of him.

“Bossy.” Dean mocked as he sat up from his position on the bed to see Castiel hunched over with his body facing him which gave him an idea. Slowly and stealthily, Dean made his way onto his knees before leaning forward and pocking Castiel gently in his side. “Cas.” He cooed, waiting for a reaction.

“Dean.” he said in a warning tone as he continued to feel Dean’s fingers pressing gently into his waist causing his to squirm slightly.

“What?” Dean asked in a tone full of innocence as he retracted his hands. “I’m bored!” he whined again moments later as Castiel returned to his task of reading through the documents.

“Dean, I swear to Spock, if you do not shut up and get on with this, I am going to beat the crap out of you!” he threatened bringing his knees further up to his chest and continuing to read on.

After reading through his papers for the everlasting time of five minutes, Dean once again threw the book on the bed. “Cas, I’m hungry.” Dean said as he began to poke Castiel’s side again, feeling the slight reaction against his fingers.

“Dean, please, we only have three days before we have to present this argument to the class, so please would you work.” He said tiredly.

“Dude, we have been working on this for the past three hours, come on, we need a break. Please?” Dean said as he took the papers Castiel was clutching to and put them down on the bedside table. Before Castiel had the change to respond to his actions, Dean brought a finger up to his lips, pressing gently. “No, listen to me Cas, you need a break or that big ass brain of yours is going to bust, and then where will we be, I will have to finish this assignment and you will be there, minus a damn brain!” he laughed softly as he finally removed his finger from its place upon Castiel’s soft lips.

“Okay.” Castiel said quietly, not once breaking the gaze between him and Dean, “Okay, we can take a break.” He said softly.

“Thank you.” Dean said as he breathed a sigh of relief, standing up and offering his hand to Castiel who cautiously took it in his own whilst Dean pulled him to his feet and made their way towards the door.

“What would you like?” Castiel asked as they made their way into the kitchen where he began to rummage through the cupboards and draws in search of food.

“Can we go out somewhere instead?” Dean asked hesitantly before continuing, “We’ve been stuck in here all day, go to the park or something, it’s sunny and we could do with a change of scenery, even take the work with us if you want.”

Castiel offered a small smile upon seeing the way Dean was trying to compromise on the situation, to be able to help him which was something Castiel himself was extremely grateful of.

“Well, you know this town better than I, where would you suggest we go?” Castiel asked looking up to Dean with the smile still on his lips, laughing gently at Dean practically jumping in the spot as he pulled on Castiel’s hand, dragging him towards the front door.

 “Come on Cas! We gotta go before the sun goes down!” Dean said excitedly as he continued to pull Castiel, throwing his shoes at him whilst pulling his own on, not stopping to notice the few faces that had appeared around the corner.

“You might want to make sure you keep a lead on that puppy there.” Gabriel said quietly, nudging Castiel in the shoulder.

“Gabriel.” Castiel laughed, “Dean is not and never will be a puppy… much more of a _stallion_ do you not agree.” He said continued happily slipping his shoes on and shouting farewell to his brothers as Dean pulled him out of the door in high spirits.

“Just look at them both, they can’t even see it can they, the way they look at each other and how they act around one another. Just look at Cassie.” Gabriel said happily as he made his way to the window, his brothers following closely behind whilst they all looked through the windows, watching Castiel and Dean walking extremely close to the other, their shoulders brushing as they laugh at the other. Dean opening Castiel’s door to the car and closing it behind him once he was settled in, sitting in the car as close to Castiel as he could throughout their drive.

“Where are we going?” Castiel asked as they left his road.

“Well, first we are going to get burgers from Ellen’s and then we are going to go to the park, we can sit on the benches to eat our food then we are gonna get ice cream.” Dean said matter-of-factly.

* * *

After the duo had made their way past Ellen’s, Castiel sat in the passenger seat with a bag of burgers, fries and pie in his lap whilst the two sang along to Dean’s classic rock tapes blasting through the car.

When Dean finally pulled into the car park, he and Castiel jumped out of the vehicle and into the fresh air, Dean running ahead to find the best spot whilst Castiel lagged behind carrying the food and his bag over his shoulder of the work Dean had surely forgotten about already. Castiel laughed a little at the sight of this boy so happy and enthusiastic, running towards the tables and jumping up onto it whilst beaming a huge grin at Castiel which only served to warm his heart.

“Come on Cas!” Dean shouted sitting atop the table with his legs crossed in the middle.

Castiel picked up the pace slightly as he was walking, laughing gently to himself at this scene playing out in front of him, having made a friend in Dean he never would have thought to have happened between them, that he and Dean were just too different. Though over the course of the past two weeks, he had been able to get to know this boy and vice versa with both learning so many different things about the other and at how much they truly had in common; their shared love of classic rock, food whilst Dean had brought Castiel into the world of pie, ordering a slice each any time they went anywhere, and their collective love of films.

“Hurry up Cas, and your ass up here so we can eat, I hope Ellen put extra in there.” He said happily as he pulled Castiel’s hand to help him onto the table beside him and taking the bag from his lap to open the containers.

“Here you go, extra bacon.” Dean said as he passed on burger box over to Castiel, whilst taking the other for himself and opening the box to see a large burger surrounded by onion rings and chips. “Oh thank you Ellen!” Dean said at the sight in front of him, making Castiel laugh happily as he dug into his own burger.

“Mmm” Castiel moaned slightly around his burger, causing Dean to let out a deep throaty laugh as Castiel looked over at him in confusion. “What?” He asked innocently.

“Dude, there are kids here. Just wait ‘till you get home to start making those noises.” He winked around his laughter as Castiel’s face began to fill with colour upon the realisation of what he had done.

“Don’t worry Cas.” Dean said seeing that he was now eating as quietly as possible with his head down, to look up at Dean with his big blue eyes as he spoke. “I don’t think anyone heard.” He said reassuringly. “Although grandma over there looks like she would be pretty into it.” Dean laughed with a wink again at Castiel.

Though this time Castiel could not hold back the large grin that painted his face upon seeing how happy Dean was, and that there was in fact an elderly lady looking _strangely_ at him in that moment.

“You dick!” Castiel laughed as he threw a chip in Dean’s face which was expertly caught between his teeth, grinning straight at Castiel.

“You wouldn’t be the first to say that.” Dean laughed as he continued to eat the remainder of his chips from his box.

Castiel laughed happily alongside Dean as they finished their meal watching the world continue around them, occasionally admiring the other when they were not looking , their hands sporadically brushing as they sat as close to one another as possible.

* * *

Once the burgers were finished, Castiel brought his bag up onto the table, moving down so that he was sitting on the bench rather than atop the table, puling Dean down alongside him so that they could continue on their work.

“Come on Dean, you promised.” Castiel said as he saw Dean huffing.

“Yeah, but we didn’t get the ice cream…” Dean complained, looking at Castiel with hopeful green eyes.

“Well, how about we do this for an hour and we can eat the pie. The when we have done that we can go get ice cream and go home, watch a film or something?” Castiel compromised, seeing Dean’s eyes lighten at the bargain.

“Well, I suppose that could work.” Dean said trying to sound put out with the situation, though failing with the smile that crossed his lips “But I’m choosing the film!“ He said as he pulled the books open and got stuck into the assignment.

* * *

As it turned out, the hour passed much quicker than either were expecting, it had been almost two hours before Castiel looked down at his phone to see that it was nearing three O’clock.

“You ready to go then?” he asked Dean who was still reading through the law report they had printed, highlighting specific areas of interest.

Though as he heard Castiel speaking, he looked up, dropping his pen to the table before asking “Ice cream?” in a childish manner which simply made Castiel laugh alongside him, both smiling to one another.

“Well, come on then.” He said as he began to pack the books and page back into his bag before taking Dean’s hand to pull him up from the table whilst they laughed and stood closely together on their way to in Deans opinion, ‘the best ice cream’ in Kansas.

“’s good right!” Dean said happily as they walked through the park with their cones in their hands, slowly eating away at their stacked ice creams.

“It is very cold.” Castiel said as he momentarily stopped licking the frozen treat whilst he recovered from the temporary brain freeze.

“Well no shit.” Dean laughed nudging Castiel gently in his shoulder before continuing on “Tastes good though. I used to bring Sammy here all the time.“ Dean said with a soft fondness in his tone whilst he relayed the story to Castiel. “Mum and dad would be busy working in the holidays, mums a teacher so she has all of the work to mark and stuff, and then dad has the garage to run but he also went on a lot of hunts and would be away for a few days but he always brought us some shitty gift back.” He laughed as he took his keys out of his pocket to show Castiel one of the keyrings. “He went south the other week with Rufus and brought me this and Sammy a teddy. I swear that kid, if he gets any more bears Dad won’t need to go hunting again.”

Castiel watched Dean as he spoke, the way his eyes lit up, and how he stretched his hands across to make his point, how much he clearly loved all of his family. As Castiel continued to watch the boy beside him talking, he did not notice the foot that was outstretched ahead of him until he connected with the floor.

“Shit.” He said as he tried to pick up the remainder of his broken cone off of the floor.

“Cas! Cas, are you okay?” Dean asked as he knelt down to his side, taking Castiel’s an again before lifting him to his feet to take a look at his injuries. Dean kept Castiel’s hands in his own as he slowly twisted them in his own, seeing the small droplets of blood accumulating through his palms, he pulled him over to the free bench close by.

“Dean, I’m okay.” He tried to reason, pulling his hands back to show there was nothing wrong with them, though Dean had a tight grip on his wrists, using the paper tissue from his ice cream to clean away the blood, and to clean as much of the dirt as possible.

“No Cas, look at your damn hands.” He said holding them up in front of Castiel’s face so that he could see the large abrasions covering his palms and the pieces of grit stuck into his palms. “Come on, let me take you home and get you cleaned up?” Dean asked looking up to Castiel with concern in his eyes.

After a moment, Castiel gave in, offering Dean a sincere smile as he relaxed his palms in Dean’s lap whilst he finished the job.

“Right, that’s the best I can do here.” Dean said as he looked down to Castiel’s hands, absentmindedly running his thumb gently over his palm before looking back up to one another, smiling happily.

“Thank you.” Castiel said quietly as he looked down at his hand still in Dean’s palm, his cheeks warming up at the unfamiliar sensation in his hands and the now fairly familiar feeling of _butterflies_ in his stomach at the sight and feeling of Dean Winchester.

“Come on dude.” Dean said eventually, standing to his feet. “Let’s get your skinny little ass home already!” he laughed as he pulled Castiel back to his feet, though this time not letting go of his hand as they made their way back to the car.

Dean finally let go of Castiel’s wrist once they were standing beside his baby, smiling down at him before jumping in and waiting for Castiel to follow in suit, getting themselves ready to leave the car park.

Whilst they were driving back, Dean began to tell Castiel more stories from his childhood; how he would spend his days with Sam throughout the summer exploring, or the snowball fights and snowmen they would build throughout the winter months when there was enough snow.

Castiel simply sat in the passenger seat, watching how Dean would so carefully drive, though always look back over to him as he was talking. The way his lips moved perfectly around his every word whilst his eyes sparkled with the childhood memories. He was happy to sit there all day and listen to Dean talk about what made him happy, just to listen to his voice on repeat.

Watching Dean talking and singing along happily, Castiel lost track of time and their route, keeping his eyes on Dean, it was not until Dean said “Come on Cas, were back.” That he realised the car had stopped and that they were now in his driveway.

Castiel smiled shyly over at Dean before unbuckling his belt and making his way out of the car where Dean met him, closing the door behind him.

“Well come on.” He said as he began to drag on Castiel’s wrist again, careful of his palms. “Your hands aren’t going to clean themselves out here.”

“Alright, alright.” Castiel laughed as he followed Dean closely up to the house, opening the door as the two slipped into a silent house.

“Hmm.” Castiel said noticing the silence, though relaxed upon noticing a small note on the table beside the door, it read:

**_Cassie, we have gone to get food (hopefully more sugar, but you know what Michael can be like). We shouldn’t be out too long if you're getting this._ **

**_P.S. don’t forget to put a sock on the door!_ **

**_P.S.S. also, don’t forget to wrap it before you tap it, or before Dean taps it, you know, whoever is tapping whatever, be safe brother!_ **

Castiel laughed heartily upon reading the note, still not fully understanding the way others seemed to think something was happening between he and Dean, of course he felt something towards Dean though  that did not mean these feelings were by any way reciprocated on the others behalf.

“You okay there?” he heard Dean ask, snapping him out of his laughter.

He looked back up to Dean who was still standing impossibly close and smiled as he scrunched up the paper before throwing it into the trash can, wincing slightly after forgetting about the abrasions on his hands.

“Come one Cas.” Dean said as he gently tugged Castiel through the house once they had rid themselves of their bags and shoes. Dean led them through the house and towards the main bathroom where he sat Castiel on the toilet seat before rummaging through the cabinets until he came out triumphantly with a small first aid kit.

“Okay, this is going to hurt like a bitch, but stay with me.” Dean joked as he began to dab the antibacterial agent across Castiel's palms before pulling away at the sharp gasp that escaped Castiel’s lips.

“I’m sorry.” He said looking down at his lap.

“Don’t be sorry for anything Cas.” Dean said with a soft smile as he hesitantly continued. “I’m sorry about this, it will be over soon. I used to have to do this all the time for Sammy, we would go to the park, and the kid would fall over everything, from the swings, off the slide, over the monkey bars. You name it, he had probably fallen off of it, and then I had to clean him up. And then dad always used to let me clean up his cuts he would come home with from hunting when we were little, and you know, I watch a lot of Doctor Sexy.” He laughed, holding Castiel's palms up to him, to show the now clean cuts. “See, all good now, just needed something to distract you.”

Castiel simply sat on that toilet seat, dumbfounded at the way this came so naturally to Dean, how gentle this boy was with him, how gentle he was around everything, something his exterior disillusioned. Though he was grateful at Dean’s help, he had never been good with pain; it always brought back too many memories of his childhood and alcoholic mother. But with Dean’s stories there was no way he could not sit there and become engrossed, to learn more about his past as he cleaned his palms which were now expertly cleaned, and did not hurt half as much as he had expected.

“Thank you Dean.” Castiel breathed as he looked down to him, seeing the soft smile still playing at the others lips, his hands still firmly planted in Dean’s whilst his fingers continued to move in feather light motions over them.

“You are welcome Castiel.” He laughed as he stood from his kneeling position beside Castiel to search the cabinet once more for plasters. “Oh, nice going there. You know, I bought Sammy some of those last year.” He laughed happily holding up the box of Barbie plasters in his hands.

Castiel could not help the large smile that spread across his lips “Gabriel decided we needed to ‘spruce’ our supplies, you should see what he did to Michael and Lucifer’s wardrobes when we first moved here.”

The pair continued to watch the other, content in their motions as Dean gently placed the plasters over Castiel’s palms. “There you go princess, all patched up.” Dean joked as he extended his hands to pull Castiel to his feet once more.

* * *

Once Castiel and Dean were back in his room, they had set themselves back upon the bed, their feet outstretched as Dean searched through the mountain of films for the one he wanted to watch.

“Here!” He shouted triumphantly as he jumped up with the DVD case in his hands, a grin crossing his lips.

“What is it?” Castiel asked, squinting his eyes to try and read the title of the DVD though at the angle Dean was holding it he could not quite decipher the name.

“Nope, you will have to wait and find out.” Dean said as he removed the disc from the case and pushing it into the slot of the television before throwing himself onto the bed beside Castiel with the remote in his hand.

The introduction to the film began to play on the screen after the advertisements had run their course; it was then that Castiel saw Dean had chosen to watch _Mulan_. Not that he was complaining of course, this was one of his favourite Disney films, who could not enjoy the antics they all get to and the breaking of the traditions and ‘social normalities’.

“Mulan?” he asked squinting at Dean, though this was a film he liked, Dean just did not seem like the kind of guy that would sit around watching Disney films, much more of the action or horror type of guy. Though again, perceptions can be deceiving, Mulan of all showed that, not to judge a metaphorical book by its cover.

“You’re damn right we are watching Mulan.” Dean said with a bright smile as he pushed himself a little closer to Castiel on the bed, their shoulders touching and their hands occasionally brushing from the position they were in, though neither gave any of this a second thought.

As the film continued to play, both would sneak small glances at the other before quickly turning their attention back as to not arouse suspicion.

Although through certain areas of the film, Dean would nudge Castiel in the ribs to point something out, and especially to shout at the screen for the way Shang would look at ‘Ping’, showing Castiel how there was obviously something between them before laughing to himself at the faces Shang would make, creating his own dialogue over the films own. “Shit, I’m in love with a dude.” He shouted as Shang’s face contorted looking at ‘Ping’.

Dean continued this throughout the film though once they began to sing ‘Girl worth fighting for’; he quickly joined in, much to Castiel’s delight.

 “For a long time, we’ve been marching off to battle. In our thundering hers, we feel a lot like cattle. Like a pounding beat, our aching feet aren’t easy to ignore. Hey! Think of instead, a girl worth fighting for.” he sang loudly and happily, sprawling across the bed, still lying on his back before kicking his legs and making the motions with his arms, continuing as he heard a soft giggle escape Castiel’s lips.

 “That’s what I said, a girl worth fighting for…” he sang louder, trying to bring Castiel into the song who was just laughing beside him. “I want her paler than the moon, with eyes that shine like stars” with that, he smiled into Castiel’s eyes. “My girl will marvel at my strength, adore my body scars!” Dean continued as he made a show of his muscles, smiling brightly at Castiel whose smile only widened as he kept his eyes on Dean before pressing his palm against his chest and pushing him off of the bed, laughing louder.

Though the one thing Castiel did not count on would be Dean grabbing a hold of his wrist in an attempt to regain his balance before giving up and allowing the impending doom of falling from the bed to take him, though a smirk covered his lips as he took Castiel down with him, a small squeak falling from Castiel’s lips and an ‘oof’ from Deans as they landed on the floor, Dean laying on his back whilst Castiel fell over his waist. His legs strategically straddling Dean as he began to laugh heartily, Dean following in suit.

Both stopped laughing after a few minutes upon noticing their close proximity. They stared at one another for a minute before Castiel slowly leaned forward until he and Dean were merely millimetres apart. That was when Castiel froze, what if this wasn’t what Dean wanted, why would Dean even want _him…_ they have a project to work on, that’s all this is. Though before he had the chance to pull away, Dean tiled his head up the last few millimetres to catch Castiel’s lips in his own.


	15. You catch the pearl and ride the dragon's wings...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't know, I really don't think this is one of my best chapters, parts are good, though it did not flow as I had envisioned, and so for that I am sorry.  
> But I hope that you are enjoying this fiction so far.

The two stayed in that position for what felt like an eternity. Castiel had his palms pressed to the floor at either side of Dean’s ears, paying no mind to the sharp pain coursing through his hands at the heavy contact. His knees were still bent beside Dean’s elbows where his hands were placed upon the back of Castiel’s calf’s, gently running his fingers across his lower leg.

Dean let his head finally fall back as Castiel slowly pulled away to breathe. Taking a look at Dean’s slightly shocked expression, Castiel quickly straightened up, horrified at the realisation of having just kissed his law partner, and the look on Dean’s face made him feel so guilty. His face turned red as he looked down to Dean’s chest, avoiding the green eyed boys gaze, muttering a small “Sorry.”

Though Dean was momentarily perplexed by what had just happened, something he had been wanting to do for weeks now, he pushed the surprise from his face as a soft smile ghosted over his lips and looked back to see Castiel pink face looking away from him. Carefully, he brought his thumb and index finger up to Castiel’s chin, tilting his head up before surging forward and connecting their lips in a soft, caring kiss before pulling away again, keeping his hand on Castiel’s chin and smiling into his blue eyes. “I’m not.” He said softly as his other hand moved to rub tentative circles into Castiel’s exposed hip bone.

Castiel smiled down at the boy below him, the pink still deep on his cheeks as he felt Dean moving below him, blue staring into deep green as the pair lay on floor together through the comfortable silence that had fallen between them.

It was only when they head the loud slamming of a door did they finally break the gaze between them, looking towards the door as a voice shouted “Honey, I’m home!” Castiel smiled to himself at the happy tone in his brother’s voice resonating through the house.

Castiel slowly got off of Dean and to his feet as the other boy let out a soft groan of disappointment at the loss of warmth, though graciously accepted the hand Castiel held out towards him.

 Dean steadily got to his feet, standing so that he was facing Castiel, looking down with a soft smile completing his features. Neither could keep the smiles off their faces as they continued to stare at the other, the pink of Castiel’s cheeks becoming more vibrant as Dean’s hand slowly rose to sweep the strand of hair that had fallen across his forehead. Dean chuckles softly at the blush traveling further across Castiel’s face as he gingerly lent forward and placed a soft kiss upon his burning cheek.

As Dean moved away from Castiel, he made his way over to the bed before piling all of the paperwork neatly upon Castiel’s desk, readily available for use later on.

“Cas, you home?” the same voice shouted through the house again, though this time much closer.

“Yes, I’m in here!” he responded as he pulled the door open to three smiling faces, beaming straight at him. “What?” he asked cautiously as Dean joined him by his side.

“Close your eyes.” Michael commanded.

“Why?” Castiel asked curiously.

“Cassie, just do it.” Lucifer scolded as he brought his palm up to cover Castiel’s eyes. “No peeking.” He mocked before nodding to Michael.

“Don’t be so yellow Cas, hold your hands out.” Gabriel spoke joyfully, practically bouncing on the spot.

Castiel huffed in slight annoyance as he stood there with both hands held out towards his brother whilst he could hear Dean lightly snicker beside him, bringing a soft smile to his lips.

He began to open his eyes again, slowly adjusting to the light as he felt Lucifer’s hand move away from his eyes and something that was heavy and cold be placed upon his plastered palms, offering a slight relief to the niggling pain.

Castiel was taken aback when he looked down to a red, white and blue shield lying across his hands.

“Happy Birthday!” the trio shouted as thy also threw confetti into the air and blew streamers, whilst singing to Castiel who stood there laughing whilst Dean was behind him completely dumbfounded.

“It’s your birthday?” Dean asked as he turned Castiel to look at him.

“No,” Castiel said between laughter at Dean’s startled expression and his brothers grins. “My brothers, they like to celebrate everything and well we end up having multiple celebrations each month.” He said happily whilst he took some of the confetti off of himself before blowing it into Dean’s face as they both laughed.

* * *

After the trio had finished singing Happy Birthday to a giddy Castiel, they finally left he and Dean to their own business, though with the door closing behind them, Castiel looked around himself to see Dean staring intently at him.

“Well, happy birthday Castiel Novak!” Dean laughed happily as he slowly moved closer to Castel still standing stock still, unable to fully process everything that had been happening around him.

“Thank you, Dean Winchester” he said eventually, watching Dean like a hawk as the boy continued to sway closer to him.

Once Dean was standing in front of Castiel, he put his hands upon his waist, placing a soft kiss to his lower lip and before Castiel had time to react, he was falling back onto the soft sheets of the bed in a fit of laughter whilst Dean fell down beside him, never once letting go of his waist. “You ticklish there, Cas?” he asked while he was met with a breathless gasp from below him.

Catching a glimpse of those blue eyes as they flickered open, surrounded by a pink face and childish laughter, Dean eventually fell back, simply staring towards Castiel who was still clutching his sides trying to catch his breath.

When he saw the green eyes staring at him, a bright smile crossed his face as he leaned closer, bringing his hand up to cup Dean’s cheek who leant into the touch with a content sigh before placing a soft kiss to his lips and pulling back shyly after a moment.

“Oi, Cas. Get your ass down here!” Lucifer shouted through the house as Castiel jumped slightly from their position. “And you too Dean!” he continued.

“Come on then.” Dean said as he pulled Castiel to his feet, sliding his hands down to Castiel’s waist who twisted slightly from the touch as Dean again placed a soft kiss to his lips, pulling back with a stupidly bright grin on his face as he lent in closer, pressing his forehead against Castiel’s. “I really like kissing you.” Dean whispered.

“That is good.” Castiel replied equally as quiet “Or this would be a little awkward.” He laughed softly, pressing his lips against Deans before running his hands up and through Dean’s hair.

“I could do this all day, but I think you are wanted downstairs.” Dean said as he cupped Castiel’s cheek before finally pulling away as he pushed Castiel towards the door.

“Cas! Food’s getting cold!” Gabriel shouted as Dean and Castiel made their way to the bottom of the steps.

“Were here.” Castiel replied as he and Dean slipped into the kitchen.

“Finally.” Lucifer murmured, earning a knock in the ribs for his lack of subtlety. “you guys gonna grab a plate, pizza’s over there, take as much as you want, whatever is left, we can have for breakfast.”

“And the rest is already set out in the living room!” Gabriel commented as they all piled through the door holding full plates and empty glasses.

* * *

With Dean and Castiel following behind the others, they were once again left with the smaller sofa. Whilst Michael and Lucifer sat together on the larger sofa, Gabriel opted for the space on the floor between them which offered much more space and comfort unbeknownst to him, his brothers began to fill his hood with odd pieces of popcorn, sweets and crisps, each at a time before smiling triumphantly back at the other. Castiel and Dean on the other hand spread themselves across the smaller seat where Dean sat first with Castiel laying down over him with his head on Dean’s lap, neither seeing anything different in their actions.

 “Birthday boy gets to choose the film!” Gabriel laughed as he threw the television remote towards his brother who ducked to avoid being hit whilst Dean caught it effortlessly before putting it down into Castiel’s hands.

After a few minutes of searching through the online film collection, Castiel finally declared “I want to watch Mulan!” as he selected the film, earning a soft chuckle from his brothers.

“Dude.” Dean said as he nudged Castiel’s ribs, “We just watched this film.”

“Not all of it.” Castiel laughed as Dean’s cheeks lit up whilst his brothers looked towards one another in slight confusion as Castiel began cackling in his seat, poking Dean back whilst a soft smile ghosted over his lips.

“One thing you should probably know about Cassie here, Dean-o, he tends to watch the same film ten times over, so I hope you like films.” Gabriel laughed as he threw a piece of popcorn at Castiel shouting “Incoming!” whilst Castiel opened his mouth, expertly catching the flying food.

All laughed before turning their attention towards the television as the film began. Dean lifted his piece of pizza from his plate, though before he could bring it anywhere near his mouth, Castiel intercepted it, lifting his head gently and taking a large bite out of the slice.

“What?” he asked as Dean looked down at him with a soft smile.

“You just ate my pizza.” Dean replied with mock offence across his face.

“Not all of it.” Castiel said with a wink “I wanted to try some.”

“Well you should have got a slice then.”

“Why do I need to get a slice when I have you.”

“Oh, so that’s all you want me for, pizza.” Dean said in shock as he pulled back slightly from Castiel.

“Well, that too.” Castiel said as his hand rested gently above the hand on his stomach, looking up at Dean with a lopsided grin as Dean smiled back at him.

“Here, take this piece, _birthday boy._ ” Dean laughed as he put the bitten piece of pizza onto Castiel's plate, though stealing one of his in the process.

“Give it back.” Castiel said as he tried to reach up for the piece of pizza Dean was holding above his head.

“No.” he said pushing it up further.

“Yes.” He said reaching higher, though still not high enough.

Dean laughed at Castiel’s misfortune, not hearing him mutter “Fine, if that’s how you want to play it.” Under his breath before turning to attack Dean’s sides, his bony little fingers prying into Dean’s ribs as the boy began to laugh heavily before smacking the piece of pizza gently down on Castiel’s face.

“Cas, stop it!” he laughed heavily.

“Give me the pizza then, asshole!” Castiel said as he tried to reach again.

“Fine, fine.” Dean caved eventually, wiping some of the sauce off of Castiel’s face with his finger before sticking it in his mouth and smiling back at Castiel again.

After a while, the two calmed down enough to continue watching the film in their previous positions whilst Dean pressed his hand back into Castiel’s stomach gently.

* * *

“Is it me, or do those two look much closer than before?” Michael asked nudging Lucifer in the side as they watched Castiel with his head in Dean’s lap, laughing along to the scenes as Dean offered his little commentary to each, his hands still resting on Castiel’s stomach.

Both brothers smiled brightly at this scene, it had been so long since Castiel had seemed this happy. “Well, there’s only one way to find out.” Lucifer said as he turned back to them before Michael could stop him. “Hey Dean.” He said as both Dean and Castiel’s heads snapped over to them, Dean’s in slight terror as to what it was he wanted with him and Castiel in confusion.

“Yes?” Dean asked hesitantly, looking down to Castiel for reassurance who offered a gentle smile.

“You two screwin’ or what?” He asked casually as though he were commenting on the weather.

Dean spluttered on the juice in his mouth, almost spitting it out as Castiel just looked over to them with dismay. “Lucifer!” he scolded.

“Wh-what?!” Dean asked eventually.

“Oh come on!” Michael began, “you two have been inseparable for the past few weeks. Look at you, you have Cassie’s head in your lap, you guys are always touching, you think you are being sly, but look at you. Come on guys, really.” He said in earnest with a smile.

Castiel and Dean looked at one another, smiling brightly as Dean laced their fingers together, gently rubbing his thumb across Castiel’s hand before looking back over to the three brothers staring wide eyed at their hands.

“Well shit, I didn’t think they’d actually confess it.” Gabriel said to break the silence that had fallen between them.

“Ha, told you it would happen before the project had finished!” Michael smirked as he extended either palm towards his brothers. “That will be five dollars each thank you.”

“What?” Dean asked again.

“Startled squirrel!” Gabriel laughed.

“Gabriel!” Castiel scolded, “Don’t be such an assbut!”

Dean snorted lightly at Castiel’s remark, whispering quietly “Assbut?”

“Sorry Deanie.” Gabriel mocked as he threw popcorn at his face.

“Shut up. We are missing the film.” Castiel said as he wriggled slightly in the seat to get a more comfortable position.

 “Hey, Dean!” Castiel said after a while of silence, nudging him in the ribs.

“What’s up, Cas?” Dean asked, looking down at his friend.

Castiel looked up at him with a deep grin, holding his hair back from his face whilst saying “No, I did!”

“The soldier from the mountain!” Dean gasped, pulling away from Castiel with raised brows, though he quickly began to tickle Castiel’s sides as the boy squealed and Dean laughed heartily.

As the film continued to play, both Castiel and Dean sat/lay in their respective spaces upon one another whilst they quoted sections of the film’s dialogue, laughing heavily at each point whilst the three brothers watched the film, listening to their comments with light-hearted laughter.

At the last scene of the film, Castiel and Dean sang the final song, taking each verse as it came, singing to their hearts content as Micharl and Lucifer moved into the kitchen to clear away all of the plates and cups, filling the dishwasher before packing the remaining pizza into boxes and into the fridge ready for another day’s breakfast.

“Come on guys.” Lucifer said as they entered the room once again to see Castiel, Dean and Gabriel all spread out across the sofas throwing food at one another and laughing whilst the ending music continued to play throughout the living room.

“What’s up, Luce?” Castiel asked as he saw his brother standing in the doorway.

“Well, considering it is half past ten now, I think it is about time Dean heads home unless he is planning to stay the night, but if that is the case then you,” he said directing his attention towards Dean “need to call your mother so she is not worrying.”

“Nah, it’s alright thanks man, I gotta get home, early start in the morning but thanks for the offer.” Dean said as he began to get to his feet, brushing a few stray crisps from his body.

“Well, in that case. Here you go.” Lucifer said offering over a small sandwich bag to Dean.

“What is it?” Dean asked as both Castiel and Gabriel looked up to see what was in the bag.

“What, you’ve never been to a party before.” Michael said with a laugh.

“It’s a party bag, dumbass.” Lucifer laughed as Dean opened at the plastic to reveal assortments of random sweets and crisps.

“Well, thanks man, but I really better go now.”

“Well Dean, it has been lovely to have you in our home again on this fine evening, I hope you will gladly grace us with your presence again in the not so distant future.” Lucifer said.

“Thank you for the invitation, I shall do so.” He smiled as Castiel got up to walk him out. “Oh wait.” He said before they were by the door, “I left my bag in your room.”

“Right you did.” Castiel said with a grin as he dragged Dean towards his room, closing the door behind him.

“Well, here’s your bag.” Castiel said innocently as he passed the bag towards Dean.

Though rather than Dean taking the offered bag, he pushed it to the side, twisting one hand behind Castiel’s waist to hold him in place whilst the other travelled up to cup his cheek. “Finally.” He breathed before leaning in and gently pressing his lips to Castiel’s. As Dean continued his motion and once Castiel regained his composure, he hesitantly put one of his hands on Dean’s waist, feeling the sharp hipbone against his cold fingers whilst Dean’s grip on his own hip grew tighter ever so slightly.

When they finally pulled away to catch their breath, Dean kept his hands in place, one upon Castiel’s cheek and the other on his waist whilst one of Castiel’s hands were on his waist, the other fell limply to his side. “I’ve wanted to do that ever since we left this room all those hours ago.” Dean breathed as he rested his head against Castiel’s, smiling deeply into his ever so blue eyes.  His smile only growing as he saw the soft pink creeping up his neck as his hand continued to stroke the prominent cheekbone below his thumb.

“Well, we had better get you home before your mother begins to worry.” Castiel said as he regretfully pulled away, though slightly relieved to be able to take a deep breath of his own air again.

“I guess you’re right.” Dean pouted as he picked his bag up from the ground around them.

Castiel could not help but laugh at his helplessness, standing in the middle of the room, looking back at him with those deep green eyes, breaking him and before he had a second thought, he moved swiftly to close the space between the, crashing his lips against Dean’s, a little more forceful than their previous kiss had been, though wonderful never the less. It was Castiel this time who took the first step, bringing one hand to rest on the back of Dean’s neck, toying with the soft hairs that had collected whilst the other tangled between Dean’s fingers which had begun to move slightly higher to rest once again on his hip.

They pulled away suddenly when there was a loud bang from downstairs, “Shit.” Castiel muttered as shouting began.

“What’s up?” Dean asked as his finger moved up to card through Castiel’s hair.

“I don’t know.” He huffed as he moved his head to rest it on Dean’s shoulder. “But I am guessing Gabriel has either broken or burnt something. And knowing him as I do, it is more than likely the latter.”

“What would he have burnt? The pizza was already cooked and nothing else needs cooking right?” Dean asked thinking through any possibilities.

“Gabriel has a bit of a sweet tooth.” Castiel replied, pulling his head up to smile at Dean, “And well, Gabriel, he tends to get easily distracted. You would be surprised how many small fires and disasters our little kitchen has seen.” He laughed happily.

Dean laughed back, looking at the smile across Castiel’s lips as the shouting and crashing continued to resonate. “Well, I think I had better go now then, before your brother breaks the house.”

“I will see you on Monday?” Castiel questioned, twiddling his thumbs between Deans with a shy smile.

“Yeah Cas, I’ll see you Monday.”

* * *

After Dean had left the room, Castiel fell back onto his bed, bringing his hands to rest over his eyes as he pushed himself further onto the pillows to gain more comfort. He was only brought out of his sleep induced state at the addition of extra weight to the bed, dragging him to the side slightly.

Opening his eyes, he saw Gabriel beaming at him from the beanbag across the room whilst Michael and Lucifer were spread across the bed, covering Castiel lightly.

“So, he seems nice.” Michael started off saying, nudging his brother who peeked at him through half closed eyes whilst Lucifer let out an undignified snort which was met with a swift knock to the ribs. “He is! And he makes little Cassie happy.” He said fondly, ruffling his brother’s hair who twisted from the contact.

“Well,” Lucifer began, “‘nice’ is not enough for Cassie, only the best.” He responded. “People thought Hitler was a ‘nice’ guy in his youth, but now look where he is.”

“Dead?” Gabriel offered.

Lucifer threw a pillow back into Gabriel’s face with a playful smirk, “Shut it smart ass! That’s not what I meant.” Lucifer scolded.

“Look Luce, I have seen Dean around school a fair bit, you hear a lot of stories about the guy, and everyone seems to have something to say about him. _But,_ the kid has surprisingly good grades, even though he doesn’t look as though he is going to admit it, you know the whole ‘tough guy’ exterior he has going on. I mean yes, he gets into fights, but do you not remember what you were like at his age. How many times were you called into the principal’s office, I seem to remember you and he being on a first name basis, especially when you ended up in all of those detentions.” He stated, smiling when he saw Lucifer bow his head slightly. “Okay, so we have figured he might not have the _best_ track record or attendance, but even you have seen the way he acts around Castiel. The kid is smitten! Yes, we will talk to him, you know, the whole _big brothers_ thing.” Gabriel said adding emphasis to the latter part of his speech, looking back to Castiel before continuing on, “But, I think we need to trust Cassie on this one, to only step in wherever it may be necessary.” He concluded as all three brothers sat on the bed watching him carefully.

There was a long stretch of silence that followed in which all of the brothers looked from one and then onto the other until Castiel finally broke the silence saying “I second that!”

Lucifer laughed lightly, patting his youngest brother on the leg, “Oh, sweet, naïve Cassie, you don’t get a vote in this one kid.” He continued to laugh until he suddenly found himself flat out on the floor. Looking up, he saw Castiel still sitting on the bed, a smirk on his lips as he looked straight at Michael, raising one eyebrow slightly.

 “Though,” Michael began, excelling a huff of annoyance as he took a hold of his brothers hand to pull him up off the floor, looking at him as he continued to speak, “I do agree with Gabriel on this one, even you saw the way that boy looked at Cas, Luce. The laugher, just look at him, the kid has had that stupid smile plastered on his face for days now.” He finished, pointing to Castiel who true to his word was still smiling brightly.

“Fine, fine, fine!” Lucifer caved eventually after being stared down by his brothers, Castiel showing the puppy dog eyes. “But, if that boy hurts you Cas, then I _will_ break him.”

“Really?” Castiel asked, and upon seeing Lucifer hesitantly nodding his head in the slightest, he jumped from his seat, tackling his brother down in a heavy hug. “Thank you, Luce!” he eventually said smiling brightly still.

“Don’t think for a moment though that I won’t make good on my word.” He threatened seriously.

“You're the best!” he said before moving off so he was not crushing his brother.

“Right, that’s enough of this crap, you,” he said pointing at Castiel “go to sleep now. And Gabriel, go clean your crap up, then you can go to bed too. Mike, you can go do whatever you want, but it is getting late and you are in the hospital tomorrow so make sure you get enough sleep, I don’t want you killing anyone, we don’t have time for a lawsuit.” Lucifer finished, pulling the blankets over Castiel's torso before pushing the other two out of the door, closing it behind him.

* * *

When Dean finally pulled his car into the garage of his house, he simply sat there in the chair, his music still playing throughout the car. He simply sat there, staring into the palms of his hands, thinking over everything that had happened that evening. He was pulled away from his thoughts however as the porch light lit the way through a stray cat roaming the streets. He looked to his left, smiling at the small bag on the seat beside him, taking the bag; he placed it into his lap before looking through its contents. The first thing he noticed was a layer of crisps covering everything else. Pushing his hand in, he pulled away some crisps, putting one in his mouth before continuing to look through. It was after a minute of searching that he had found layers of different sweets, though finally, at the bottom, he pulled out a small slip of paper. In confusion, he opened the small white slip, holding it in his fingers as he read the neat blue writing.

**_Dean, we have seen the way you are looking at Cas, and I just want to tell you that if you do ever hurt him, we will hurt you. Castiel has told us that you have a younger brother, just think how you would want to protect him at all costs, well, that is how we are. You remember how protective Marlin is of Nemo, well, just think of Cas as Nemo in this equation. Sharks are the least of anyone’s problems._ **

He smiled to himself, seeing how much Castiel’s family cared for him, though it got him thinking, the way he does care for Sammy, how he would do anything for him, multiplied by three other siblings, and an older sister. The thought of this made him contemplate how he was going to go around this, what he should say to Cas, should he talk to him about the family business. Though after careful consideration, Dean remained affirmative that this was not something Castiel needed to be brought into, this was not his business and enough trouble had come out of it already.

Pushing all thoughts of the family business out of his mind, Dean took the keys from the ignition and the bag from his lap, locking the door behind him as stepped from the car and made his way across the path and towards the front door of the house.

Looking at his phone, Dean quickly put it back in his pocket seeing that it was almost eleven o’clock. He brought his key back out of his pocket, gently pushing it into the lock, opening and closing the door behind him as quietly as possible to not wake anyone in the house. Though as he turned his back on the door, and tiptoed silently through the dark house with only the light of his phone for guidance, he gently closed his bedroom door behind himself whilst turning the light on, illuminating his room, though also a small face sitting on his bed.

“Sammy, why aren’t you asleep?” he asked as he pushed his leather jacket off his shoulders and onto a chair.

“You’re late.” Sam replied, completely ignoring Dean’s previous question.

“What do you mean?” he said pulling his socks off and throwing them into a small basket at the end of his bed, taking a top out of the draw and replacing it on his torso.

“You said you would help me with my homework.” Sam said bowing his head gently to the books scattered in front of him.

“Oh, I’m sorry Sammy.” Dean spoke softly, moving to sit beside his brother as he brought a piece of paper into his lap, looking down to scan the page. “You want to start it now?” he asked as Sam moved closer.

“Really? You don’t mind, you don’t want to go to sleep?” he rambled, looking up hopefully at his big brother with deep brown, puppy dog eyes.

“Course.” Dean laughed, shaking his hand though the younger boys hair as he tried to move away from the contact. “Come on kid, find where we are gonna start so we can get this done.”

Dean and Sam spent the better part of an hour working through numerous pieces of work until Sam was falling asleep on Dean’s shoulder. Only when he felt the light snores and the heavy weight on his shoulder did he stop talking and look over to see Sam’s eyes delicately closed and his lips slightly parted.

“I guess it’s time for you to go to your own bed now.” He whispered, gently pulling at his brother, lifting him into his arms before passing across the hall and towards Sam’s own room where he placed him on the bed before pulling the blankets over him and kissing his head ever so lightly.

After he was sure that Sam was sound asleep, he turned the light off and closed the door behind him, he silently made his way back into his own room, collapsing back onto the bed and falling asleep almost instantly, still fully clothed dreaming about the events of the day, mostly Castiel, Castiel’s eyes, Castiel’s lips.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading, your kudos and comments are what keep this going.   
> And so, thank you all!


	16. It was the Heat of the Moment...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Now I know a lot of people always see John as this horrible, terrible man. But that is not the way I see him, I mean yes he was a little shitty but in the end, he sold himself and the cult, his life's work, to save Dean. And if you don't think that is love, then I'm sorry but that is the way I see it.
> 
> Thank you for reading, and I hope you enjoy it!

When Dean woke early the next morning, the first thing he noticed was the cold, rough fabric constricting his legs. Opening his eyes, they slowly adjusted to the dim light of the room, lifting his arms; he saw they also were fully clothed. Yawning loudly, he slowly stretched his arms before twisting out of the bed and making his way towards the bathroom.

After showering and brushing his hair and teeth, Dean made his way back into his room with only a towel around his waist. As he closed the door behind him, taking out a clean shirt and pair of boxers before pulling a pair of jeans off of the floor, after sniffing them and finding them to be satisfactory, he added  them to the pile of clothes he threw onto the bed.

Stripping out of his towel, dean slowly pulled his boxers on and his jeans over the top. Lifting his shirt over his head, he gently pulled it down over the waistband of his jeans. Moving back to the bed, he curled lowly as he dropped his socks on the floor before leaning down to pick them back up and put them on his cold feet.

Twisting back around, he smiled seeing the small sandwich bag still full of the sweets and small pieces of chocolate from the night before. Dipping his hand in, he brought out a small red sweet, popping it into his mouth before walking out of the room and down the stairs where Sam was sitting at the table eating a slice of toast.

“You're up late.” Sam commented seeing Dean walk into the room, their mother not far behind.

“Well seeing as I had to help you with your homework, I think I deserved a lie in don’t you.”

“Thank you Dean.” Mary said as she passed a slice of bread to her eldest son. “Though your father has been waiting for you, Bobby called about a half hour ago.”

“Crap.” He muttered. “When does he want to leave?” Dean asked pushing the piece of toast down his throat.

“Half an hour ago.” Mary laughed “I convinced him to clean the gear and pack everything back into the car and that you would be out soon.” She said sitting down next to the youngest Winchester.

“’kay.” Was all Dean said in response, making his way towards the garage where his father was busy putting the last pieces into the boot of the vehicle.

“Good luck Dean!” both Mary and Sam shouted before he was out of earshot, earning a muffled thanks in response.

* * *

“How’s Bobby doin’?” Dean asked as he made his way beside his father handing him the last item.

“A bit of trouble with a pack of Werewolves down South, wants us to head down and lend a hand.” John said as he moved towards the driver’s door. “You ready to go? We should be back soon.”

“Well, off we go then.” Dean said happily as he jumped in next to his father.

“Normal tactics.” John began “Bobby is going to meet us at the end of the road, and then we gut these sons of bitches. They’ve already bitten a few humans. They don’t seem to be killing anyone, just turning ‘em.”

“So they’re trying to create an army, take over the town?” Dean asked.

“That looks just about it.” He said throwing his journal from the back seat into Dean’s lap. “And how are we gonna stop this?” John asked.

“Umm.” Dean stumbled, racking his mind for the right answer. Finally he spoke up “We’re gonna have to gut them all?” he asked unsure, though as he looked over to his father, he saw the soft smile over his rough features.

“Exactly! But Bobby has created a new formula, if they haven’t fed, there is a chance we can turn them back, but that is unlikely to be the case, too many dead or missing persons to only be turning.” he said regretfully.

“Really?! I thought that was impossible?”

“Well, apparently not, and you know what Bobby is like with all of this stuff.”

“So you want me to find the best course of action?” he asked flipping through the journal in his hands until the pages on Werewolves and news articles came up.

“Right!” John said with what Dean caught to be a proud tone to his voice.

* * *

After a four hour drive, it was rounding up to twelve o’clock when Dean and John finally arrived in the location Bobby had told them.

“Wanna get some lunch while were waitin’ for Bobby?” John asked as they pulled into the car park of a local diner before shutting the engine off and pulling the keys out of the ignition.

“Sure, they’ve got burgers right?” he asked looking towards his father.

“I’m sure they’ll have burgers, son.” John laughed stepping out of the car as Dean followed closely behind.

“Go get a seat while I take a leak.” He said as they walked through the doors of the slightly rundown diner.

“Alright.” Dean said as he moved away from his father, taking a seat and looking over the menu a middle aged, blonde waitress in a knee length yellow dress with a small white apron flowing from her waist down had passed to him.

“Can I get you anything to drink?” she, Linda the nametag read, asked with a soft smile.

“Yes please, can I have a diet coke and a… coffee for my father please, Linda.” He asked with a mirroring smile.

“Of course, sweetheart. You ready to order too or are you waiting for your father for that?”

“Yeah, I think its best I wait, thank you.”

“No problem, I’ll be back with your drinks in a minute.” She said turning away and walking back towards the counter where she grabbed a glass and a small white mug.

When John made his way back to the booth Dean was sitting in, he sat across the table from him, taking the cup and lifting it to his lips and taking a long sip over it. “Have you ordered yet?” he asked as he put the cup back onto the table in front of him.

“Not yet, I waited for you after I ordered some drinks.”

“’kay, well do you wanna order now then?” He said motioning for the waitress, Linda, to walk towards the table.

“What can I get for you two?” she asked smiling brightly with a pen and pad of paper in her hand.

“I’ll have the double bacon cheeseburger please.” Dean said as he passed the menu back over to her.

“Two double bacon cheeseburgers it is then.” John said with a smile as he mirrored his son’s actions, passing the menu back over to their waitress.

“Coming right up!” she said as she walked away, handing the order over the small window and into the kitchen where the chef pulled the piece of paper, shouting orders at the other workers while he passed a tray of fries and a salad back to the waitress who took them towards another table offering light conversation and earning a soft laugh from the table.

“How’s school goin’?” John asked as he pushed his now empty cup over into the corner of the table.

“It’s going well, I’m getting’ good grades in Law, me and Cas are finishing the project, we have to present it next week and see if we can win the case.” He said, his face lighting up when he said Castiel’s name which his father did not fail to see.

“Ahh, so this is the ‘Cas’ you have been speaking about for the past few months, the Cas you never shut up about.” He laughed, watching his son whose face slowly became redder as he continues the conversation.

“Um yeah, we have been working on it for a while, that’s why I was there a lot.” He said shyly, though he didn’t fully know why, he had never been like this with any of the other girls he had been with in the past.

“So when are you gonna bring this girl home to show me and your mother.”

“I-um…” Dean stumbled before finally giving in “Cas is actually a guy.” Dean muttered, crossing his eyes away from his fathers.

“Well, when are you going to bring _him_ home then?” John asked in the same tone, his face never faltering.

“You, I, what?” Dean asked eventually, dumbfound by his father’s sincerity and calmness, this was not something he expected to see from John Winchester when he told him that his eldest son liked boys.

“You heard me, when are you going to bring Cas round to meet us?”

“I, I don’t know. I hadn’t really thought about it.”

“Well you better think about it, any boy that is going to date my son is going to meet his parents too.” John said with a smile on his face, reassuring Dean although he still was unsure about the sincerity of his words.

“You’re okay with this?”

“Of course I am, what aint there to be okay with..?” John asked simply, taking a chip off of the plate that Linda brought over to them and offering a small thanks as she walked back over to her other tables.

After a slow conversation and eating their meals in almost silence, Dean couldn’t think of anything else other than Castiel, his eyes, his hair, him. After thinking that Castiel would never meet his family, yet his father now wants to meet him, though also the fact that his father was so accepting of his sexuality, no questions, no slurs, nothing he was expecting to see that half of the town would easily share. Though rather he was happy on anything his son was saying to him.

Once they were back in the car, Dean was still quiet after their small talk in the diner. It was only then that his father began anything again. “What’s up with you?”

Dean looked over at his father who was looking intently at him, slight confusion and worry showing through the hard lines around his eyes. “Nothing.” He said seeing his father look more intently back at him, lifting an eyebrow until Dean finally caved. “I- why… why are you so calm about this? Your son just told you he likes guys and you are sitting here as though nothing has happened. This is you. You were born in the time of homophobia, I’ve seen Grandad Campbell, the way he talks around anyone and everyone.”

“Yes, well in case you hadn’t noticed, your granddad and I are two separate people. I don’t give a crap who it is you like, as long as you're happy, I really couldn’t care that much.” John said in complete honesty, bringing a smile to his sons lips.

“You really mean that?” Dean asked.

“Of course I do. You’re my kid.”

Dean did not respond in words, though rather in actions, moving over to his father, and putting his arms around him in a tight hug.

John laughed as Dean pulled away “Alright then, no more chick flick moments.”

Dean smiled as he moved back into his seat, keeping his eyes on his father who was still smiling under that gruff exterior.

“Wait a minute; I thought we were waiting for Bobby in there?” Dean asked looking around the windows to try and find the man.

“No, he’s running late, should be here in a minute though, spoke to him earlier.”

“’kay.” Dean said settling back into his seat.

It was not long until a knock on the window brought both Winchester’s out of their own worlds and back to reality. The reality in which there was a rough man standing at their window, a plaid shirt underneath a light green body warmer and a dark blue cap covering his light hair.

“Finally got y’ur asses down here.” He said as Dean rolled the window down whilst he stuck his head into the car.

“Traffic on the way but were here now.”

“Right you are.  Follow me down so we can get this over.” Bobby said as he moved into the back of the Impala. “Oh, and you’re gonna give me a lift.” He said simply as john began the engine and pulled out of the carpark.

“Take a left down there, then a right and there’s a big ol’ barn. In there you’ll find ‘em all.”

* * *

As the trio walked slowly and silently into the barn, the dark outline of two large males and one slightly smaller female laying on the floor, curled in on themselves, tightly compacted next to the other. John motioned to both Bobby and Dean, his fingers pointing out what he presumed to be their leader, the male in the centre. He continued with his hand gestures, pointing from Bobby to the younger, brunette female laying close to the leader whilst Dean was directed towards an older male, with light blonde hair and a large gash covering one side of his cheek, keeping him away from the leader. John pointed to himself and then between the largest male and himself. The leader in the dim light bared his sharp teeth with his eyes still closed and his hand ripping into his surroundings.

All were careful not to make a sound as to make sure not to announce their presence. Dean crept to the left, hiding behind a large pillar whilst Bobby and John made their way to the right, moving closer to the sleeping beasts with every calculated movement of their feet.

Walking further forward, all set themselves in positions ready to counter an attack if necessary, pulling silver stakes from their pockets ready for whatever they may counter.

After minutes of standing apart, sizing up their competition, John slowly moved forward, toeing his way towards their leader, though before he was able to get close enough to the sleeping form, a large noise startled all. As they spun, both Bobby and John stared to Dean who was standing beside a large metal object still spinning lowly on the floor, producing a small amount of noise in comparison. Though that was quickly covered by the snarling and the growling from behind. Slowly turning around, all saw the baring of large teeth, the distinguishing factors between human and werewolf. It was in that moment they knew, this was not a matter of saving the pack, though annihilation. There would only be one winner and to save the population of this small town from the same fate, they did what had to be done. Bobby dove forward, forcing his silver stake into the heart of the younger, female werewolf, seeing the limp, motionless body falling to the floor in the same moment Dean himself leapt forward, tackling the male werewolf who was momentarily paused watching the scene ahead of him. Though the moment he hit the floor, he fought back with all of his strength, Dean delivered a swift right hook to the man’s jaw, knocking his head back against the hard floor, his knuckles also serving a blow to the ribs whilst the man howled. Metres away while Dean was still struggling with his own werewolf, Bobby and John were both on the task of bringing down the pack leader, the strongest by far.

It was then that the wold below Dean flung the smaller man off of him, knocking him to across the barn while his leg made a sickening crunch as a beam caught his stride. The last thing he remembered was the snarling of teeth, the hot stain of blood streaking from his body as the room began to darken, the yellow eyes looming closer and closer, reminding him of only one others. The boy he so despised, only bringing a thin sliver of happiness at the thought of blue eyes and bright smiles.

* * *

While Dean had been out with his father, something Castiel did not know about, Charlie had knocked on his door in the early hours of the morning, catching Michael before he left for work who opened the door, letting her in and just telling her to walk up to Castiel’s room.

She followed the instructions, walking quietly up the stairs after waving goodbye and made her way into Castiel’s room, closing the door behind her. Seeing Castiel still asleep, she jumped onto the bed atop of him, laughing as she nearly fell off of the bed from Castiel’s surprise.

“What the hell are you doing?!” Castiel asked as he regained his breath, Charlie following him to sit beside him on his bed, moving over slightly so that she had some space.

“I was bored and your brother let me in.”

“What time even is it?” he asked squinting towards the clock on his bedside table.

“Some time around seven I think.” Charlie replied, making her way under the blanket to envelop them in warmth.

“Okay, well I want to sleep more.” He said yawning loudly as he began to pull the blanket further up his neck.

“Me too.” And with that she dug herself into his side, closing her eyes as they both fell back asleep almost as quickly as they woke.

It was several hours later when they were woken by voices, distinguishing them to be that of Gabriel and Lucifer. Upon this realisation, Castiel groaned lightly, burrowing his face further under the blanket to hide himself more.

“Hey Cassie, you know the rules. No girls in your bed.”

Castiel mumbled something undignified under the blanket which was only heard as a small, muffled sound.

“Okay, we will let it slide this once, but if we find out that little red head is pregnant then you are going to be raising that child with her, there will be no way of getting out of your responsibilities mister.” Lucifer said happily, ducking from the pillow that was thrown at him before continuing his speech. “Well, if you have any cravings, there are pancakes downstairs.”

Hearing those few words, both Charlie and Castiel shot up, their heads emerging from the bedding at the mere mention of food while both brothers laughed in the doorway.

“We’ll be down in a minute, and there better be blueberries and chocolate.” Castiel said dryly, rubbing his eyes as he and Charlie both slowly made their way out of the bed.

“Milady” Castiel said extending his arm to Charlie.

“Good sir.” She responded as she took hold of the offered arm, linking their elbows together as they began to walk down the stairs of the house and towards the kitchen where true to their words, a large stack of pancakes were golden and steaming on the countertop, surrounded by assortments of toppings from lemon and sugar to blueberries, chocolate, sprinkles. Everything Gabriel could find in the cupboards, they had set out on the table.

“Oh yes.” Charlie said smiling brightly. “ _This_ is a breakfast, I like this family.”

“That is good, we tolerate you also.” Lucifer laughed from behind them, leaning forward to steal a handful of chocolate buttons from one of the many glass bowls littering the surface.

“Do you want to watch some films today?” Castiel asked Charlie, pouring chocolate sauce over the singular pancake lining his plate.

“That is exactly what I want. Food, lots of it and films galore. I want Harry Potter or maybe Star Trek.”

“Well, Harry Potter is going to last twenty hours which means no sleep before school tomorrow. Not that I would complain but I am thinking instead we should watch terrible shark films; Sharknado, Two headed shark attack, Mega shark v Mega octopus, and every other damn terrible film.” He said with an excited grin as he grabbed the whole plate of pancakes, looking at the door, and hearing muffled laughter from Gabriel and Michael in the kitchen.

“Of course! Wait, what are you doing with the pancakes?”

“We are going to need food if we are having a marathon of films.”

And with that, Charlie grabbed  a large mixing bowl, tipping the majority of the contents of the bowls into the larger bowl, mixing everything together as they ran happily up the stairs, closing the bedroom door behind them, placing the bowl and plate onto the table before falling down beside the large stack of DVD’s.

“Find the sharks, and pull them out.” Castiel said as he began pulling cases from stacks, and placing them into a small pile between the two of them.

After five minutes of pulling and finding the films, trying not to let the stacks fall down, there was finally a large pile of thirteen films sitting between them.

“What are we starting with?” Castiel asked eventually as they pushed each film into its original order.

“Sharknado!” Charlie said grabbing the disk out of the box and sliding it into the television before sitting back on the bed and pressing play.

Their day continued in that way same manner, watching numerous terrible films about sharks with horrendous acting and shockingly bad graphics and eating great amounts of food and drinks that were brought up to them by Michael and Gabriel, both of whom left the house throughout the day, leaving Castiel and Charlie laughing heartily as the time passed.

By the time midnight rolled around, they were both too tired from their day of doing nothing but film watching to send Charlie home, and so instead Castiel changed into his own pyjamas, throwing a clean top and pair of pyjama bottoms at Charlie who gratefully accepted them before sliding under the covers and falling asleep.

* * *

By the time Monday morning came around, Dean slowly opened his eyes, his vision staying blurred longer than usual, his head pounding through his skull while he lay there motionless, the warmth beside him comforting the ache he felt in his bones. Looking to his left, he saw the sleeping form of Sam, his eyes delicately closed with long strands of brown hair falling across his face as he calmly breathed through his nose, his eyes flickering ever so lightly. It was only when he began to move that the stiffness in his  bones really set in, his arms felt as heavy as the beams he was remembering to have hit. After finally moving both of his arms, he slowly spun his legs across the bed, feeling heavier than usual as he yawned audibly, rubbing his eyes as they fully focused to the light streaming through his partly cracked curtains.

Moving his body forward slowly and quietly as to not wake the sleeping boy, he pushed himself off of the bed, beginning to stand though before he knew it, his face met the hard, cold floor. Groaning loudly, he pushed himself up on his elbows, craning his neck to find the cause of his newly found problems, only to be met by a large, heavy, white cast covering his leg.

“Shit!” he grunted, pain shooting through his leg while young eyes scanned over him.

“Dean!” Came the worried voice settling down in front of him, his eyes softening as he saw the creasing of Dean’s brow, and the terrible masking of pain he was trying to hide. “Are you okay, Dean?!” He asked, slowly helping his brother to his feet as he pushed him back, sitting him upon the edge of the bed.

“Yeah.” He said closing his eyes briefly. “I’m golden.” His mocking tone evident while Sam sighed in frustration.

“Dean. Why can’t you just admit you are in pain for once, drop this ‘hard man’ act and just let someone help you?” Sam asked, his eyes dimming at the pain he could still see so clearly across his face.

“You're right.” Dean began. “But, what you are forgetting here is that I am the one to look after you, your my baby brother, kid. You don’t need to worry about any of this crap.”

“Please Dean, let me help you.”

Dean sighed quietly, barely audible though seeing the way Sam was looking at him, he quickly changed his tone. “Okay, you can help. But don’t go thinking you’re not the baby of this family still.” He said finally, putting one of his arms around the kids shoulder, dragging him into his side.

“Thank you.” Sam mumbled quietly against his chest.

“Hey, hey. What wrong?” Dean asked pulling Sam back so that he could look in his little brothers eyes. “I’m fine, see.” he said motioning to himself.

“Dean. You broke your freaking bone! Do you know how much worse this could have been.” he said lowly, turning away slightly as to mask his emotions.

“Sammy, I’m fine. It’s an occupational hazard yes, but this is something I need to do.”

“But-“

“No ‘but’s!” he cut in. “This is my own choice, this is what I _chose_ to do. No on forced me into this, okay.” He finished, ruffling his brothers hair as he tried to pull away from the motion.

“Fine, fine. But you are not going to keep all of this to yourself. You’re gonna to let me help, and your gonna stop being such a jerk, okay?” he finished.

“Okay. Now that’s enough chick flick moments for this year.” Dean agreed finally before remembering something. “Oh, and you can’t tell Charlie or Cas about what happened okay. They don’t need to know about this life.”

Sam smiled brightly at Dean’s mention of Castiel. “How’s it goin’ with Cas now then?” he asked not so subtly.

“It’s great. He’s so freakin’ smart, you two would get along great, and he loves reading. Something you two could bond over as well. Oh and his family, they are so damn weird. He lives with his three brothers, Gabriel, Michael and Lucifer.” He said, laughing at the slight look of confusion crossing Sam’s face. “I know, who names their kid after the devil right. But the guy is actually quite nice, and his sister, Anna, she is at college, and Cas is studying to become a lawyer. And he is going to be a damn fine one at that, you should hear all the shit he knows.” Dean rambled. Not noticing the look of amusement on Sam’s face until the boy snorted loudly. “What?” he asked defensively, reddening slightly at the realisation of how long he had been talking about Castiel.

“You two finally together now then, or have you still not grown the nerve. See, that I don’t understand. You can fight demons, werewolves, witches, everything. But you can’t ask the guy you like out. You’ve never been like this with anyone else before.”

“Well, I kinda kissed him a bit, and then he kissed me, and well there was a bit of alteration in there. And Cas is different, that’s why. I haven’t felt like this with any of the others, they were just sex really. Cas, he is just… well, Cas.” Dean said fondly.

“Look at you, hotshot!” Sam laughed, knocking his brother lightly.

They continued talking for a while about most things, mainly Castiel until Mary made herself known to the room. Looking to the door, both boys saw the blonde haired woman leaning against the door frame with a soft, affectionate smile across her thin, pink lips. “Come on, Sam.” She said softly. “You gotta get ready for school.”

And with that, Sam slowly made his way off of the bed, making his way towards the door as Mary raced past him to push a struggling Dean back into the bed. “No, not you Dean.“

“But mom!” he tried to counter though was quickly stopped in his tracks by a stern but soft face.

“Hey, what is that you are always telling Sam; ‘no buts’. So you keep your ass in that bed and you relax okay. You need to rest, and you need to heal!” she said sternly, brushing her hand through his short hair. “Sam, clothes, now.” She said again, pushing the pouting boy out of the room before turning back to Dean. “I’m going to take Sam to school this morning. I will have my phone on me, so if you need me, you can call, or your Bobby is only working a half day today, so he can come if you need him.” She said quickly, fussing over him as he tried to move away, finally giving in and allowing her to pull the blanket over his chest and effectively tie him into a cocoon. “Okay, so there’s food in the cupboard, leftovers in the fridge. Some crisps in a draw, some drinks as well.” She said sitting herself on  the edge of the bed. “Oh, I almost forgot about the painkillers, there are plenty in the cupboard above the toaster with the cups. So make sure you take some whenever you need them. but only two in any four hour period. I don’t want you overdosing while were not here.” She rambled.

“Mom, I’m okay.” He said, sitting up slightly and placing his hand on hers. “Go on, go to work. I’ve got everyone’s numbers and there’s enough food to last through the winter. I’m not gonna starve, okay?” he laughed, pushing his mother lightly. “Now go.” He said softly, which was met with a soft laugh and a gentle shake of the head.

“Since when did you grow up so fast?” She said smiling at Dean, “One day you were my little baby sitting in his chair throwing pie across the wall, and now here you are; taking care of everyone.”

“Well, I’m still your ‘little baby’, and if you ever want to give me pie, you know I’m not going to say no.” he laughed again, pulling another from his mother as she finally stood up when Sam came back into the room, fully dressed and a backpack slung over his shoulders. “And Sammy, you have a good day at school. Ring me if you need me.”

And with a final laugh, farewells and slightly more babying on Mary’s side, Dean was finally alone in the housel with only the sound of his records playing for company. Huffing lightly, he swallowed the two painkillers that had been put on his bedside table, alongside the glass of water before falling back into the bed, his eyes fluttering shut as the darkness enveloped him, with only the calming music surrounding his senses. The soft lull of Asia filling the room and pushing him into a deep sleep filled with all the people he loved in his life, especially blue, streaks of blue covering every corner of his imagination.


	17. Telling me what your heart meant...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you are all enjoying this so far, it is pretty enjoyable to write, though it seems a little rushed through some parts?  
> What are your thoughts on it?  
> Thank you all for everything you have said about it so far. Thank you!  
> I also apologise for the fact that this chapter is twice as long as all the rest and took so long to update, I got a little carried away I guess, but I hope you all enjoy it none the less.

Castiel awoke Monday morning to a warm body pressing against his own. Sighing contently, he breathed in the scent of the warm body, expecting to smell old leather, motor oil and apple, though rather, what he smelt was in fact very different; vanilla, old books and ink. Opening his eyes slowly, he was met with deep auburn hair tricking his nose and a small section of the blanket covering half of his body.

Groaning aloud, he began to take a hold of the blanket, pulling as hard as he could in the hopes of covering himself, he was instead met with deep resistance. “Charlie.” He grumbled, pulling harder on the blanket, though still it did not move more than a millimetre. “Share.”

“Nu-uh.” She mumbled into the pillow, pulling the blanket further onto herself, rolling into a ball and leaving Castiel completely exposed.

“Jeeze, you're such an ass!” he said as he twisted himself around Charlie to gain some of the warmth.

“Cassie, time to get up. You too Charlie!” Michael shouted as he walked into the room, throwing one of the teddies from the desk at them, only to have it thrown back in his face moments later with a “No!” from Charlie as she buried herself even further into the bedding.

“Oh yes missus. You have got school.” He said again, and when he was met with no response, he left the room, only to return moments later with Gabriel and Lucifer in tow.

Silently, the trio walked into the room and beside the bed while Castiel moved off of it to stand behind Gabriel.

“One” Michael began counting as they inched closer to Charlie, “Two” a little closer before finally saying “Three” as Michael pulled the blanket away, with Gabriel and Lucifer jumping onto the bed, Gabriel landing atop of her and Lucifer beside her.

“Come on Charlie get up or we will resort to extreme measures.” Lucifer threatened as Charlie kicked her legs out, pushing him off of the bed. “Oh that’s it.” He said jumping back onto the bed as he and Gabriel began ticking the girl’s sides, a high pitched, childish laughter being released while Castiel stood to the side beside Michael who was still holding the blanket in his arms, smiles plastered to both faces.

“No, no!” she said between laughter, trying to wriggle free of the two bodies above her. “Get off of me you buts.”

“Get up, or our buts are staying put.” Lucifer said as both he and Gabriel moved to sit atop of her, their bodies pressing down, though not as heavily as one would expect.

“Fine, fine!” she said as they moved so she could sit up, rubbing the sleep from her eyes to see four smiling faces staring straight back at her.

“Good, you have school soon, so get dressed. You can either go home and get some clothes or borrow some of Anna’s clothes; you look about the same size.” Michael said sitting on the end of the bed after pushing the blanket back on.

“Thanks, but I’ve got some clothes here.” She said smiling back as she moved her legs to the corner, jumping off of the bed to stand beside Castiel.

“Right. That makes sense” he laughed “Go get ready then you two; your brothers and I are going to make breakfast now.” And with that Michael, Gabriel and Lucifer left the room and began walking down the stairs with the following sound of pans crashing around and loud shouting to be heard.

 “Do you want to go home and grab your bag before we go to school?” Castiel asked as he moved to his closet, pulling some clothes out ready for the day ahead.

“Yes thank you, but it’s by the door so it’ll only take a minuet to get.” She said following him. “Do you mind if I go have a shower first?” she asked.

“Of course, you know where everything is.” He replied as she nodded, moving out of the room while Castiel began to change.

* * *

Once both were ready, they made their way down the stairs and into the kitchen where Michael passed both a plate full of toast and bacon alongside a glass of orange. All ate together, laughing happily until Michael directed them to the time.

“Hey Mike, why aren’t you at work?” Gabriel asked as they all made their way to the door.

“I have the day off today.” He said, watching them out their shoes on and bags over their shoulders.

“m’kay.” He said as he finished tying his Doc Martens on his feet.

Just as Gabriel, Castiel and Charlie were making their way back to the door, though before they made their way past Michael and Lucifer, they handed each child a small bag containing their lunch for the day, alongside some small snacks. All the while, Gabriel stood saying “My babies, all grown up and off to save China!” loudly, wiping a small tear from his eye.

Hearing the quote, Charlie laughed, though stopped in her tracks being the last to the door where Michael handed her a small bag similar to the two boys before her. Though rather than taking the bag out of his hands, she just looks around herself, first to Castiel and Gabriel who by now had turned their attention to see what the holdup was, and then back to the waiting, smiling faces of Michael and Lucifer. “What’s this?” she asks quietly, staring dumbfound at the bag.

“It’s a puppy.” Lucifer mocks before letting out a soft laugh. “It’s your lunch.”

“But why?” she asks again.

“Well, humans, as we presume you to be, or you know if you are a vampire, then I guess we can sort something out, there are a few people we know who you can eat.” He laughed, alongside the others.

“Not that you ass, why are you giving me lunch?” she asked, staring up at Lucifer.

“Because you Charlie are an honorary Novak.” He said while Michael moved forward with a spatula from behind them.

He moved the spatula so it was on her left shoulder before tapping her right shoulder with it, saying “I dub thee Charlie Novak-Bradbury.” While the others began to chant “One of us! One of us! One of us!” in the background.

“Now, don’t forget your lunch,” Lucifer said again, pushing the bag into her arms and her out of the door “Novak.”

Though before Charlie was fully out of the door, she jumped forward, swinging her arms around both brothers necks, pulling them into a tight hug and whispering “Thank you!“ Because for the first time in years she felt as though she belonged somewhere, that she had a home, a happy, loving home surrounded by loving and accepting people.

Letting go of them, she smiled at their beaming faces before turning to the two younger brothers and slipping her arms over their shoulders, standing in the middle before happily saying “Onwards and out!” while they made their way away from the driveway and towards her home to grab her bag.

Once the three had made their way from Charlie’s house with her bag on her shoulder, they all happily made their way to the bus, talking and laughing until it arrived and they went their separate ways, Gabriel walking further back in the bus and sitting next to the girl they now knew as Kali while Charlie and Castiel sat closer to the front together. Though when Castiel made his way onto the bus, he looked to the back, expecting to see the smiling, bright green eyes, though rather he was met with the faces of Jo and Benny in their usual seats, Jo with her eyebrows scrunched and her thumbs busily texting away and Benny beside her, saying something to more than likely try and calm her. Castiel’s head tilted lightly to the side, trying to figure out why Dean was not on the bus, maybe he was late, maybe he got a lift to school today, there is no reason that it would be Dean Jo was texting. Looking forward, Castiel got his book out of his bag alongside Charlie as they both began to read over their journey to school.

It was when Castiel did not see Dean in the morning or during their Latin lesson that he began to worry, even though Dean looked to be the type to miss school, for some reason, there was just a seed of doubt in his mind why he was not in, and the expression he had seen on Jo’s face in the morning on the bus.

* * *

When Dean finally awoke from his sleep, he looked over to his phone resting on his bedside table which read  _10:49._ Realising he would not fall back to sleep any time soon, he slowly pulled his legs from under the blanket and spun them to the edge of the bed. Staring down at the floor, he saw the leg; it was completely covered in a large white plaster from toe to knee making his leg look twice the size.

Exhaling a breath of annoyance, he used his hands to make a purchase on the end of the bed, giving some sturdy balance as he tried to put weight on both feet. Beginning with the good foot, he pressed against the cold, hard floor before pushing the other down. As he began to stand, he suddenly found the pressure to be too much, falling back against the bed with a small shout in pain.

Pushing himself back up, Dean sat with one foot against the floor, the other hovering, creating a plan of action for how to escape the confines of his room. Looking around, he noticed two grey sticks leaning against his wardrobe. _Great_ he thought, moving himself so he was standing on one foot, he hopped unsteadily over to the wardrobe, using the walls for balance before putting his arms into the crutches, it took a moment to get used to the cold hard material below his palms before clamping his hands around the plastic and pulling himself to a standing position.

 _Right, here we go._ He thought as he spun around, keeping the two crutches on the floor in front of him, pressing down and testing the balance. Pressing the left down, and then the right, he flexed his hands before taking his first step. Keeping his grounding, he remembered what it was he had seen on _Doctor Sexy MD_ , the patient always lifting their injured leg behind them before basically hopping around. Taking a breath, he followed their lead, moving the crutches further forward and jumping one step ahead. He smiled to himself brightly, seeing as he had jumped the step without falling on the floor or breaking anything. Following the same theory as before, he continued moving his crutches forward before jumping again, each time waiting for a moment to catch his balance. It was not until he had reached the top of the stairs that his smile faded; now it was trying to get down the stairs rather than a hard, flat surface.

Standing there for a few moment, he calculated his next steps before moving towards the edge and dropping the crutches to the floor before slowly lowering himself down, his legs falling over the edge of the stairs as he pushed the fallen crutches hard until they slid all the way down to the base of the staircase. Putting his hands on either side of his body, Dean began to manoeuvre himself so that he was just on the edge of the top step, his legs sitting out straight as he used his hands to lift himself up lightly and push down to the second step. Following the same theory, he continued to slowly move down the stairs one at a time until his feet hit the bottom. Smiling, he reached for his crutches, pushing them into his hands before trying to stand again. After three attempts, he was standing at the base of the staircase, one foot on the ground and an unsteady hand on the hard plastic.

Slowly, he began to hop through the hallway and into the kitchen, grabbing a packet of pop tarts from an open box in the cupboard and pushing them into the toaster before pressing the handle down as the light lit. He then moved his way through the kitchen, leaning the crutches against a chair before steadying himself with one hand on the countertop, in an iron grip, and the other opening the lower cupboard and unsteadily taking a small plate out and hopping from the cupboard and back to the toaster, leaving his crutches where they were.

Waiting by the toaster for the pop tarts to cook, Dean suddenly felt the overwhelming itching sensation spreading across his leg. “Shit.” He mumbled, trying to scratch his leg but failing miserably. It only took another moment of remembering _Doctor Sexy_ to think what his next move would be, a long fork…

Reaching into the closest draw, he quickly came across an old, mismatch fork that they had picked up from a diner on their many road trips. Smiling to himself, he pushed the fork into his pocket before pulling the pop tarts out of the toaster, dropping them down onto the plate.

It was then he realised his next task; making his way into the living room carrying that plate with only one leg. “Right.” He began, speaking aloud to himself as he put both hands on the countertop, steadying his balance on the one foot before another idea hit. He hopped his way over to the cupboard below the sink, after a moment of searching and wobbling, he managed to find what he was looking for, a carrier bag. Hopping back over to his plate, he placed the bag onto the counter and the plate inside, twisting the handle up so that it was standing. Reaching back, he grabbed the two forgotten crutches and put one arm in them before putting the bag handle between his teeth and his other hand into the last crutch.

With the bag in his mouth, he hopped into the living room, pleased with his progress, he dropped the crutches back to the floor, taking the bag from his mouth and putting that on the table before falling back onto the sofa.

Pulling his feet up, he lay his legs across the sofa, pushing pillows below his leg to elevate it slightly, having seen the same thing on _Doctor Sexy._   _‘And people always say that television will never help, ha. How wrong they all were.’_ was the first thought on his mind.

The next minute, he turned his body around to reach the pop tart that was beginning to cool on the table. Biting the corner off of one, he pulled his phone out of the pyjama pocket, noticing there were a number of unread messages, mainly from Jo and Benny.

**_\- Where the hell are you, asshole?_ **

_From Jo, received 08:34._

**_\- Are you going to answer me?_ **

_From Jo, received 08:40._

**_-  Brother, you may want to answer Jo; she’s shitting a brick at the moment._ **

_From Benny, received 08:49_

**_\- What the hell, Sam just said you broke your leg?! When were you planning to tell us…?_ **

_From Jo, received 08:54._

**_\- Dean Winchester, if you do not answer me, I am going to come over there and kick your ass._ **

_From Jo, received 09:47_

Laughing to himself, he began to type out a message to Jo.

**_\- Calm your panties Jo, the hunt went a little wrong yesterday, hit a beam and broke my leg a bit, but all is good and I am fine. Sorry for not answering, was asleep. Hey, if you see Cas, don’t say anything about the whole family business, he doesn’t know and I want to keep it that way for now until I know I can protect him._ **

_To Jo, sent 11:17_

**_\- Hey, sorry about not answering, was sleeping. Not much damage, just a broken leg, a few cuts and what not. Please don’t tell Cas any of this, I don’t want him worrying, or for him to find out about the family business, not until I know I can protect him._ **

_To Benny, sent 11:19_

Once he had finally finished messaging Benny and Jo, he searched through his messages to find Sam, remembering something good about being injured – people will do anything for you, especially little brothers who love their older brother so very much, he thought.

**_\- Bring some pie home this afternoon?_ **

_To Sam, sent 11:21_

It was once he had finished his second pop tart that he felt the buzzing of his phone somewhere to his right. With a breath, he pushed the plate onto the floor and dug his hands through the chair before his hands closed around the cold device.

Unlocking his phone, he saw that there were again two more messages, this time one from Jo and one from Sam.

**_\- Well thanks for telling me you dick. Okay, I won’t tell Cas about any of this, but you are going to be in a cast for a while, so you are going to have to tell him something. Benny says he’ll stay quiet too, but agrees on the basis that you are going to have to sort your shit out. Now think that through and keep your leg elevated. Mom says she is going to come around this evening, and she has got pie too._ **

_From Jo, received 11:27._

**_\- Get your own pie._ **

_From Sam, received 11:30._

**_\- It’s all good, Jo said Ellen is going to bring me pie cause people love me, bitch._ **

_To Sam, sent 11:31_

**_\- As long as you share, jerk._ **

_From Sam, received 11:35._

Dean laughed, pushing his phone onto the floor before turning his attention back to the laptop before him and opening his Netflix account. Looking through the films, he opened what had to be one of his favourite films, _Die Hard._

Waiting for the film to load, he pushed it onto the table before twisting into a more comfortable position. Pressing play, he turned the laptop around so that he could see it from his seat.

A good hour had passed from the time he had pressed play on the screen to the moment he was laying against the sofa, not being able to pay attention to Bruce Willis running around the screen and blowing everything up, though rather all he could think of were those _damn blue eyes._

Pulling his phone from the floor, he began to scroll through the contacts, remembering having had taken Castiel’s number from his phone a while back, though not having used it yet. Though this seemed to be the perfect time, it would be his lunch break soon and it was not as though Dean had anything better to do, and wanted to talk to the boy more than anything else.

**_\- Hey Cas._ **

_To Cas, sent 12:45._

**_\- Dean?_ **

_From Cas, received 12:46._

**_\- Yeah Cas, that would be me._ **

_To Cas, sent 12:47_

**_\- How did you get my number? Better yet, how did I get your number?_ **

_From Cas, received 12:48_

**_\- Well, you left your phone on the side when you went to take a leak a while back, and I took the opportunity to take your number and give you mine. And well I forgot about it until now. So yeah, that’s the story there._ **

_To Cas, sent 12:50_

**_\- You are a very good storyteller Dean; will you tell me another sometime?_ **

_From Cas, received 12:53._

**_\- Yeah, you know what. I am pretty good at those, had a lot of experience with Sammy, the kid always wanted me to tell him a story and apparently the ones in books were never good enough for him so I had to make up a lot of them._ **

_To Cas, sent 12:56._

**_\- Is that so, what were these stories about?_ **

_From Cas, received 13:00_

**_\- Well, he always liked to hear stories about me and him, adventures we would have, saving the world or at least Kansas at the least from all kinds of monsters, I even got to name some, the ‘Jefferson Starships’ were the ones I got to name – because they’re horrible and hard to kill._ **

_To Cas, sent 13:07_

**_\- They sound good, and I would like to hear them some time. Maybe tonight when we are finishing the project you could even make me one._ **

_From Cas, received 13:10._

**_\- Oh right, about that. I don’t think I am going to be able to make it to your house tonight. But, maybe for once you can come here? I mean we need to finish this thing right._ **

_To Cas, received 13:12._

**_\- I apologise. Maybe now you will tell me why you are not in school today, and why you have not told me otherwise yet._ **

_From Cas, received 13.15_

**_\- But yes, I will bring the books to your house tonight. If you are sure that is okay with you?_ **

_From Cas, received 13:16._

**_\- ._ **

_From Cas, received 13:16._

**_\- No Cas, I’m joking with you. I thought I would give you an option and then take it away. Of course that is okay with me. Do you really think I am going to pass up the chance to see your pretty face ( ;._ **

_To Cas, sent 13:20._

**_\- Thank you for that Dean, I would very much appreciate finishing the project with you as long as you are sure you are well enough to do so._ **

_From Cas, received 13.35_

**_\- Yeah Cas, I am fine really. Nothing to worry about, I promise you._ **

_To Cas, sent 13:39_

**_\- You had better not be lying to me Dean Winchester. And I will be over when school is finished. Though I do not know the way to your house alone, I walked it with Charlie last time, though I do not wish to have to ask her to walk me there before she would have to walk home alone afterwards._ **

_From Cas, received 13:45_

**_\- No worries Cas, I’ll get Sammy to meet you at the bus and he can walk with you here. It isn’t a long walk, but I don’t want you getting lost._ **

_To Cas, sent 13.47_

**_\- Thank you Dean, I shall see you in a few hours, and then you can look at this pretty face as much as you want. ( :_ **

_From Cas, received 13:54._

**_\- Seeya later Cas._ **

_To Cas, sent 13:55_

While Dean lay there smiling to himself, Castiel worrying over him and even using his own words against him. Looking at the time, he was overjoyed to see that it would only be a couple of hours before he would indeed get to see Castiel’s _pretty face_ , and with that thought in his mind, he looked back to his laptop, opening the second Die Hard film and moving his body, thinking food to be too much of a hassle to get up for, knowing someone would be home soon, and that he could easily wait for that.

**_\- Hey Sammy, Cas is coming over today afterschool and I told him you would meet him at the bus and walk back here with him._ **

_To Sam, sent 13:56_

**_\- You finally introducing Cas to Mom and Dad now then. Good luck with that. And yes, I will walk home with him, but you had probably think about telling him that sooner or later Dean, you know secrets never work out well in the end._ **

_From Sam, received 14:00_

**_\- I know, I’ll tell him when I can protect him, now get back to your work, Bitch._ **

_To Sam, sent 14:03_

**_\- Jerk._ **

_From Sam, received 14:10_

 

* * *

After taking the bus home and saying farewell too Charlie who got off at their usual stop with a small wink and a laugh in Castiel’s direction, he met Sam at the bottom of the bus and the two made the small journey from the bus stop to the Winchester house, talking about many different things, finding out they have quite a bit in common, though the conversation on Castiel’s part quickly turned to talk of the eldest Winchester brother. Sam smiling at the way he saw Castiel speaking so fondly of his brother and the way Castiel's face lit up like a Christmas tree when he asked “so, you really like him huh.” Was all the conformation Sam needed to know that this was a good move for his brother, that Castiel was the kind of guy anyone would be lucky to have.

“Here we are.” Sam said as he ushered Castiel through the door, both boys taking their shoes off once they were inside and pushing their bags to the floor. “Come on.” Sam gestured as they made their way into the living room where they were met with a sleeping Dean, a blanket covering his lower body so that Castiel still did not see the broken leg, only the numerous cuts covering his face.

Castiel moved to stand behind the sofa, looking down at the sleeping boy with a soft smile grazing his lips until he was met with slowly opening green eyes and a rough, sleep woken voice asking “Cas?” the tone much deeper than what Castiel had heard from the boy previously, and if that did things for him, it was nobody’s business but his.

“Dean!” he said, his smile growing when he saw the corners of the other boy’s lips begin to twitch into the makings of a smile. The two continued to stare at one another, the smiles never leaving their faces, only growing until they were interrupted by a loud cough from a young voice.

“Right, I’m going to get some food and then I will leave you two to your own devices.” Sam said as he began to leave the room. “Oh, and dean…” he shouted through the house “Mum and dad said they’re gonna be late home, something about detentions and ‘stubborn sons of bitches’. I guess dad has a tough car to finish.

“’kay.” Dean replied. “Wait, Sammy?!” he shouted louder, moving to sit up slightly, though wincing at the pain coursing through his body.

“What?” Sam shouted in reply from the kitchen.

“Did you get my pie?” he asked, the hopefulness in his tone bringing a smile to Castiel’s lips.

Sam’s only response was walking through the door with two plates in either hand. “Of course I did ya jerk.”

“I love you, Sammy!” he sung happily as Sam passed him a plate, handing the other over to Castiel who offered his thanks to the young boy.

“Jeeze dude, how much medication did you take?” Sam laughed loudly as he walked away from the room.

“you do know you can sit down” Dean said to Castiel, a goofy smile on his face still as he looked back over to Castiel who was still standing with the plate of pie in his hands.

“Right, yes, sure, of course.” He stumbled, walking around the sofa to where Dean’s legs were resting.

Dean slowly moved his legs from the chair to make room for Castiel, the blanket falling away to reveal a large cast covering half of his leg.

“Dean?!” Castiel asked concerned as his eyes locked onto the white cast.

“What’s up?” he asked, following his gaze down to his leg. “Oh right, that.” He said ruing the back of his neck lightly.

“What the hell do you mean ‘oh right, that.’ Dean Winchester?! Your leg is in a damn cast!”

“It’s nothing really.” Dean tried to reason as Castiel finally sat down.

“It is not _nothing_ Dean." He said pulling Dean’s legs back up over his own lap. “You’ve got to keep this leg elevated otherwise it’s going to hurt like hell.”

“How do you know that?” dean asked while he continued to eat, watching Castiel while his hand played gently over the hard cast of Dean’s leg.

“Well, I have had a few broken bones and with three older brothers, you see a few bones snapping.”

“Alright, well then if you know how to do this crap, you can be my own personal doctor.” Dean laughed, looking back over to the smiling blue eyed boy.

“Eat your damn pie and then we can get on with that work.” Castiel said as he began tucking into is piece of pie.

“Do you want a drink, or some painkillers?” Castiel asked after they had finished eating their pie in a comfortable silence, smiling happily over at the other.

“Yeah, can you get me a drink? This damn leg kind of limits the movement.” Dean laughed tapping his leg.

“Of course. Anything else?” he asked, slowly moving Dean’s leg from his lap to place on the pillows below him, though before he could leave, Dean grabbed a hold of the boys collar, pulling him down to press a soft, gentle kiss to his lips.

“Thank you, Cas.” He mumbled against the other boys lips when they eventually pulled away, Castiel smiling down as he brushed a strand of hair from his face, making his way into the kitchen.

When Castiel returned with two glasses of water, he passed one to Dean, watching the boy drink the entirety of the glass in one movement. “Have you had a drink today?” Castiel asked concerned.

Dean simply shrugged his shoulders “it was hard enough carrying a plate in here with one leg, let alone a glass too.” He laughed.

“Here, have this.” Castiel said pushing the other glass towards Dean who gratefully accepted it, drinking the glass down.

When Dean had finished the second glass of water and passed the empty glass back to Castiel, he smiled over at him. “You wanna get on with this now then?” he asked.

“Are you sure you’re up for it? We can do it another day, ask for an extension or something?” Castiel replied putting his hand over Dean’s forehead.

“Get off me.” He laughed pulling Castiel down on top of him, ruffling the younger boy’s hair. “Come on, I’m fine, let’s get on with this.”

“Okay then.” Castiel smiled, brushing his lips against Dean’s in a soft kiss. “Where do you want to do it?”

“Well,” Dean said with a cheeky grin on his face, his hands rubbing Castiel’s side. “I was thinking in a bed, I would treat you right.” He said, kissing Castiel’s neck until he saw the boy turning to him with a horrified expressions and bright red cheeks. “Cas, I’m sorry.” He said bringing the boy to his chest. “I was jokin’. Come on, let’s go up and we can work on the project okay?” Dean said trying to ease the tension, rubbing small, comforting circles into Castiel’s skin before he saw the boy smiling again as he pulled Dean to his feet.

“Are you going to get your crutches?” Castiel asked, motioning to the discarded crutches on the floor.

Dean simply shook his head, smiling at Castiel. “I think it might be easier if you can help me up instead, took long enough to get down.” Dean laughed as Castiel put one arm under his shoulder and around his waist.

“I’m not very strong.” Castiel said as Dean let some of his weight fall onto the boy.

“Don’t worry Cas, I got you.” Dean said as they slowly made their way to the stairs.

After slow movements, the two finally found themselves in Dean’s room, sitting on his bed with the door closed and Castiel’s bag, which he had had to run back for, sitting at their feet.

“This isn’t going to take too long to finish, we just need to finalise a few bits.” Castiel said pulling the folders and books out of his bag, spreading them in front of them both.

“Okay then, let’s get on with it” Dean said as he pulled a sheet of paper to his lap.

* * *

An hour later, the two fell back after having packed all the papers away. “So that’s that done then.” Dean said lying back against the cushions and pulling Castiel with him.

“I guess so.” Castiel said leaning his head against Dean’s chest, tracing his fingers against the pattern of Dean’s top.

“What do you want to do?” Dean asked as he began to stroke the strands of hair covering Castiel’s head.

“Nothing.” Castiel mumbled as he let his hands find Dean’s, twisting their fingers together.

“Dean?”

“Yeah Cas?”

“What are we?” he asked shyly, looking down to their intertwined hands.

“We, Castiel are humans.” Dean laughed.

“No you assbut.” He laughed tapping Dean on the chest. “I meant what are _we_?”

“Are you trying to ask if we are in a relationship, Castiel Novak?” Dean smiled down at the boy who still would not make eye contact with him. “Castiel Novak,” he began, putting his finger under the boys chin to make him look at him, a soft smile still on his lips “Will you be my boyfriend?” he asked in all seriousness.

Rather than answering, Castiel leant up, capturing Dean’s lips in a kiss, slightly rougher than what they had shared previously, taking control this time to run his tongue across Dean’s bottom lips, hearing the boy moan quietly into his mouth, his hands rising to run through the boy’s hair.

Castiel moved his body slowly, moving his legs over so that they were either side of his legs, straddling the older boy’s waist. Once sat atop of him, he moved his body closer, laying flush against him, whispering a soft “Yes.” Before he pushed his tongue further into the green eyed boy’s mouth. The next thing he felt was Dean pushing his hips up lightly against Castiel’s, making the boys breath catch in his throat. Hesitantly continuing the kiss until he felt Dean’s hands begin to trail up under his top, in that moment, Castiel froze, his body staying still, his mouth stopping its movements and his eyes growing wide.

When Dean realise that Castiel was not responding with his lips, he opened his eyes to see the other boy wide eyed and staring straight back at him. Immediately, Dean pulled away, his arms dropping from below Castiel’s top. “What is it? Are you okay, did I hurt you?!” Dean asked, the concern in both his expression and his voice evident.

In response, Castiel gave him a weak smile, his eyes down casting, not wanting to see the disappointed or disgusted look on Dean’s face as he began to speak “I’m-I… I u, I don’t think I’m r-ready for t-that yet.” He stumbled, never once raising his eyes to see Dean’s.

“Shit Cas, I’m sorry.” Dean replied, his voice softening as he finally understood what Castiel meant, pulling the boy closer to him, wrapping his arms tightly around Castiel’s torso. “I’m sorry.” He said again, his hands stroking through Castiel’s hair as he placed a soft kiss against his forehead while Castiel dug his face into Dean’s neck, inhaling the comforting scent and the warm body around him.

After laying together on the bed for a few minutes, Dean felt Castiel’s breath evening out until his heartrate was back to a normal pace. At that indication, he put his hands around the boy’s face, holding it so that Castiel was looking at him once again. “You do not ever have to be sorry for saying no, okay.” He said, brushing his thumbs over Castiel’s cheekbones. “Okay?” He repeated when the boy did not answer him.

Finally, Castiel said a quiet “Okay.” in response.

“Do you want to talk about it?” Dean asked when they had relaxed into a more comfortable position, their hands intertwined once more.

“No.” Castiel said, his eyes slightly wider than usual “Not yet.” He refined before lying back down with his head on Dean’s chest.

“Of course Cas. You know I am never going to push you into anything right.” Dean said again, looking down to the young boy when there was no answer, only to be met with the closed eyes and soft breaths of the boy atop of him.

Dean smiled down at him, kissing the top of his head and twisting his body so that Castiel’s neck was not at such an angle that would cause him pain when he awoke. Slowly, Dean’s eyes began to close, his arms closing around the boy and within a matter of seconds, they were both asleep, breathing softly against the other.

It was within the hour that Mary walked through the door, seeing Sam in the kitchen, he directed her that Dean had returned to his room with Castiel, finishing the project.

As she made her way up the stairs, she was met with no sound from any of the rooms. Walking to her eldest sons room, she knocked gently on the door, announcing her presence, though when there was no reply, she opened the door to see her son with his arms tightly around another young boy, their faces mere inches apart. It was then that she realised who the boy in his arms was, the dark, messy hair, and the slowly opening baby blue eyes. Castiel Novak, one of her best students was in her home, her son’s bed.

“Mom.” Dean said as he turned to see his mother standing in the doorway, a smile on her face.

 “Hello Mrs. Winchester.” Castiel said with a shy smile, attempting to sit up though was pulled back by Dean’s arm around his shoulders. “Let go of me.” He said, poking the boy in the side until he let go of him with a happy laugh. “Hello Mrs. Winchester.” He said again with smile, pushing himself off of the bed and extending his hand towards her.

“Castiel.” She said again, looking back over to Dean before realising “This is Cas?! This is _the_ Cas, the Cas you have been talking about. Castiel! Why didn’t you say.” She laughed before turning back to Castiel “Cas.” She said, ignoring his hand again, only to pull him into a hug.

“Mum. Let go of him.” Dean said trying to push himself off of the bed.

“Stay.” They both said in unison, pointing their hands at the boy.

“O-kay.” Dean said pushing himself back on the bed.

Seeing her son’s face, Mary began to laugh, followed by Castiel who moved to sit back down next to Dean while Mary stood in front of them both. “So, this is Cas then.” Mary said with her smile brightening as she saw the faces of both Dean and Castiel faces heating up, the blush creeping up their cheeks while Castiel looked down at his hands.

“I am glad you two have finally sorted it out now then, love. Castiel dear, are you staying with us for tea tonight?” Mary asked, turning her attention from Dean to Castiel as she spoke.

“I-um, you do not need to go to that trouble Mrs Winchester, I can, my brothers will have food left over tonight.” Castiel said, his eyes locked down still.

“Nonsense. It is no trouble and no more of that Mrs Winchester when we are outside of school, call me Mary.” She said as she turned around, heading over to the door. “I will tell your father to pick some pizzas up from the store on his way home. Is there anything in particular you would like to eat Castiel?” she asked.

“Anything is fine thank you, Mrs Win-”he stopped seeing Mary looking at him pointedly “Sorry, Mary.”

“Okay, I will call you down when your tea is ready, it shouldn’t be long.” And with that she was out of the door and heading down the staircase.

“Well, that went better than expected.” Dean laughed as he fell back against the mattress, dragging Castiel so that the boy was lying on top of him.

“What is wrong, were you afraid your mother would not approve of me?”

“Not you cas, just a guy really, I haven’t brought any guys home before, I didn’t know what my mom or dad would make of it, but apparently they don’t care that much to your gender. And from what my dad said, he just wants me to be happy.” Dean said kissing Castiel gently before mumbling against his lips “And with you I am.”

* * *

It was just under an hour since John had returned home and the boys were called down, Mary shouting that their tea was ready.

Slowly, Castiel helped Dean up and off of the bed, placing their arms around the other as they had done so previously, Castiel taking as much of Dean’s weight as he was able to while Dean hopped slowly to the stairs. Once at the top, Dean used one hand to grasp a hold of the handrail, and the other still around Castiel while they went down the steps, one by one until they reached the base.

Walking into the kitchen, Castiel and Dean were still close together, Castiel helping Dean into the free chair while John sat at the head of the table, Mary to his right and Sam sitting beside Mary, leaving two free chairs opposite them. Dean took the seat next to John, opposite Mary while Castiel moved to sit next to Dean, opposite Sam.

As soon as everyone was sat, they all picked a slice of pizza from the plates in the centre of the table and placing them onto their own plates.

John was the first to break the silence “So, Mary tells me this is _the_ Cas.”

“Yes Dad, this is Cas. Cas, this is my father, John Winchester, and you know mom and Sam already.” Dean said pointing each family member to Castiel.

“It is nice to meet you Mr Winchester.” Castiel says before he sees Mary smiling in her seat.

All the while, John takes a hold of the hand beside him in the table, smiling to Mary with a small wink and a hushed whisper of “I like this one.” So that no one else could hear. “Call me John.” He corrects louder this time so that Castiel was able to hear.

“Of course, sorry.” Castiel said as he held his hand out towards John who shook it before each turned back to their own plate.

“Dean has told us a lot about you, that you have been doing a project these past weeks?” John asked as he bit into his pizza.

“Yes sir, sorry. Yes, we have been completing our law project, in fact we had finished that this evening, it was very interesting.” Castiel replied, reaching forward for the bottle of BBQ sauce and mayonnaise.

“And you enjoyed that?” John continued asking.

“Very much so, I find our legal system to be extremely intriguing, especially the way it has changed over time.” Castiel said as he squeezed small amounts of both sauces separately onto the plate before dipping the slice into the mayonnaise first and then the BBQ sauce before taking a bite.

“Dude, what are you doing?” Dean asked, seeing his sauce mixture.

“What? It tastes good… living with three older brothers, they always tried to get me to ‘experience’ new things, and well, some were good, some not so much.” Castiel laughed as he took another bite of the pizza.

“You are something else, you know that Cas.” Dean said with a smile, his hand ghosting over Castiel’s under the table, a silent gesture before seeing Castiel smile brightly back at him.

“Is that what you want to do with yourself then?” Mary asked, turning the conversation back to Castiel.

“I think so, there are many options which I would happily pursue, though law s=is by far the most thought provoking course of action I think, and the end to be able to create an equal world, that it is not simply one human form that is in control of this world though rather equality.” Castiel continued. His eyes down casting when he saw all of the eyes on him. “Sorry.” He said quietly.

“That is an admiration target.” Mary said while Dean moved his free hand back on top of Castiel’s under the table in an effort to comfort the boy.

“So dad, did you finish that car then?” Dean asked, directing the attention away from Castiel which the boy was grateful for, gently squeezing Dean’s hand in a silent thanks.

“Yeah, the engine blew and then the exhaust all but crumpled. In the end, I finished it.” John said proudly.

“Dad’s a mechanic,” Dean said turning his attention back to Castiel “owns his own garage. I help out sometimes, I’m pretty good with cars, dad taught me all I know.” He continued.

“That is interesting, do you think you would show me some time, it seems as though they would be useful skills to possess.” Castiel said looking up at Dean with hopeful eyes. “Is that how you broke your leg?” he asked.

Hearing the question made all four Winchesters look up and over at Dean who looked back to his father for reassurance. “Um, no, not quite.” Dean began hesitantly, “My dad and I, we go hunting sometimes and something crept up on us, nothing we couldn’t have handled but the circumstances were different I guess.”

Castiel watched Dean as he spoke “What do you hunt? Animals and stuff right?”

“Yeah Cas, animals and stuff.” Dean said with a smile, continuing to stroke his hand over Castiel’s.

They continued their meal, all speaking to one another in a pleasant tone, Mary and John asking numerous questions about Castiel, his family, himself and his plans. All the while, Dean kept a hold of Castiel’s hand, the two boys sharing what they thought were subtle glances over with one another though throughout the meal, Mary, John and Sam had all seen the way they were looking at the other, including their linked hands.

It was only when they had finished their meal that Castiel put his hands back around Dan’s waist, beginning to help the other into the living room that Castiel realised the time, he thanked the Winchesters for their hospitality while Dean hopped behind him, walking him towards the door where Michael was waiting for him.

“I had fun today.” Dean said eventually when they were finally out of earshot from his family, pressing his hand into Castiel's, and rubbing his thumb over the palm of his hand.

“Me too.” Castiel said before Dean leaned in to press a soft kiss to his lips, one hand till in Castiel’s, the other running up his neck and into his hair while Castiel stepped closer, putting his free arm around Dean’s waist to steady the swaying boy.

When they finally separated for air, Dean leant his forehead against Castiel’s with a content sigh. “You know, I think my family might be onto us you know, seeing as mum caught us asleep and Dad and I had a little chat when we were out hunting… So I was thinking that maybe you might like to come around one night, you know, as my boyfriend.” Dean said, smiling like a child when he was able to say ‘boyfriend’, so happy that he was finally able to relate that to he and Castiel, together.

“Yes Dean, I think I would like that.”

“Really? That’s great, I mean everyone likes you, more than any other girlfriends I have had. And then maybe we could watch a film, or we could just listen to some music, I have a lot of vinyl’s upstairs.” He rambled, stopping when he saw Castiel laughing lightly. “What?” he asked, slightly self-conscious that something was wrong.

“You're cute when your nervous.” He replied, leaning back in for one last kiss before he opened the door, waving over to Michael who was sitting in his car in front of the house, Dean following his motion.

“And you’re an ass.” Dean laughed before reluctantly letting go of Castiel's hand. “I’ll see you tomorrow?”

“Yes Dean, we will see one another tomorrow, especially considering we share classes.” And with that Castiel was out of the door, waving to Dean as he sat down into the car and left their residence.

That night, Dean looked down to his phone to see that he had a message from Castiel, and that was how his night was spent, until he fell asleep at two o’clock in the morning, texting Castiel all the while about anything and everything they could think of, happy to finally be able to call the other their own.


	18. Heat of the moment shone in your eyes...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so I'm sorry now that this chapter is pretty much twice the size of the others.  
> But I hope you enjoy.  
> Let me know what you think and how I can improve.

The rest of that week continued in a similar manner, the two boys continued to meet up each evening after school to make any small adjustments to the presentation they were to give that Friday while Dean would sit there to then also reassure Castiel that everything would be okay when the blue eyed boy was thinking of every possible way this could go wrong.

In those moments, Dean had begun to pull Castiel onto him where Castiel would lay his head upon Dean’s chest, tracing the patterns on his tops for the day, all the while Dean would softly sing _Hey Jude_ to him whilst gently running his hands through his hair. Sitting like this, Dean could not help but think back to that party that Castiel had attended at the beginning of the year, and how they had ended in a similar situation of Dean calming the boy. That was something he was never able to forget, and thanks to that, he made sure Azazel would never forget it either. Since that night, the yellow eyed boy had not said a word to Castiel, not that Dean knew of at least.

In the afternoons, both groups had mixed, Castiel and Charlie would stay sitting under the tree, but on many occasions, Dean, Jo and Benny had joined them under the tree, and while Castiel would continue to read his book, everyone around them were settled into comfortable conversations. All had got on well with Benny, having even set forth a film night that they were all going to participate in, to watch the entirety of the Harry Potter franchise.

That had all continued throughout the week until Friday finally arrived. Castiel had been awake until the early hours of the morning fretting over their presentation that afternoon, while in total only managing to sleep for three hours.

When he awoke that morning, every movement was slow, he was unable to uphold a conversation with any of his brothers, rather staring into the distance, the reality of what was happening finally catching up with him, and without Dean there he was sat in the chair with him min running a thousand miles an hour.

On the way out of the door, having still only said three words since being awake, Michael and Lucifer took Gabriel aside where he explained the presentation being today. From that, both looked to one another before looking back to Castiel, standing at the door still, unmoving.

“You're going to be fine Cas, you know all of this, we have heard your conversations with Dean on the topic, you can do it and you know it.” Michael said as he pulled his brother into a tight, reassuring hug, followed by Lucifer and then finally Gabriel dragging him out of the door and towards the bus stop where they met Charlie.

The bus ride was silent, and not their usual comfortable silence while they would read their books, Castiel instead had not moved to open his bag, his eyes staring straight through the windows, his hands in his lap while his left thumb runs heavily over his right wrist in a back and forth motion.

When the bus finally pulled into the school parking lot, Charlie had to guide Castiel off of the bus, waiting until all of the other students had gone their separate ways to walk with him to his locker and then to their classes. Luckily, they shared the majority of the classes that day, so Charlie was able to keep an eye on him, it was as though there was no one there, that it was just a shell of the boy, his aimless gaze, the twitchy movement and the shake of his hands.

As their lunch break finally came around, Castiel was slightly more settled, his hands were not shaking as much, though that by no account meant he was calm by anyone’s standards. Charlie had ushered him from the school building and below their tree, they were sitting against it as she tried to get him to eat something, anything though he would not, he kept politely declining, saying simply “I’m not hungry.” as though that was the appropriate excuse to one not eating throughout the day.

It was only when Jo, Dean and Benny made their way towards the tree that Dean noticed the vacant look in his eyes. He crouched down next to Charlie, “What’s wrong?” he asked, and the sincerity and concern in his eyes and voice would be enough to make anyone’s heart melt, but now was not the time for that.

“I don’t know, Gabriel said that he had been like this all morning, and since we got to school, he seems to think it might be something to do with law?” she said, it being more of a question than a statement, as though Dean could bring some sort of clarity to the situation.

“Shit.” He mumbled. “I had almost forgotten about that, we have our presentation next, we’ve gotta try and win this case.” He said as his eyes drifted away from Charlie and towards Castiel.

“Hey, Cas?” he said slowly, inching in front of the boy, “You okay there?”

“Yes thank you.” He said quietly, his eyes unmoving, not focusing on Dean or another, simply a few strands of grass across from them.

“You sure ‘bout that?” he asked again, moving so that he was now sat directly in front of Castiel, crossing his legs and taking Castiel’s hands in his own, his thumbs rubbing into Castiel’s palms.

“No.” he said, his voice quieter than before as his gaze moved, looking down into his palms instead.

“You wanna talk about it?” Dean asked, his hands still rubbing across Castiel’s his eyes scanning the boy’s face.

“Dean, what am I going to do?! I can’t do this. I can’t stand in front of people and speak. I can’t even talk in front of a small group of people, let alone a whole fucking class. I am going to be stood up there and everyone is going to be looking at me, and do you want to know what they will all be thinking? When is this freak going to leave so that we can get on with the lesson?!” Castiel exploded, his hands flying out of Dean’s palms to create wide gestures as he spoke, his eyes locking onto Dean’s and his hands beginning to shake again, his breathing escalating.

“Cas. That is not what anyone is going to think! No one here thinks you are a freak, okay, maybe we do, but that is what we all love about you. You are always so damn thorough about everything, we have gone over this case so many times since it was given to us, do you think half of the rest of the class had done this much work?” he said taking a hold of Castiel’s hands once again before turning to look at Benny while Castiel’s head lifted slowly to follow his gaze.

“Hey, Benny.” He began when the other boy looked up with a questioning expression, waiting for Dean to continue. “How much preparation have you guys done for this presentation today?” he asked, smiling when he saw the slightly confused look plastering Benny’s face.

“Uh, we met up a few times out of class, planning to wing it more than anything, why do you ask, brother?” came the deep, southern accent.

“See, Cas. Benny hasn’t done half of the preparation we have, and he isn’t worried, right?” he asks turning his attention to Benny who nods back to Castiel, offering a smile.

“Yes, but Benny knows what he is going to say, Benny can talk in front of people. People like Benny!” Castiel stated, looking back down at his hand, smiling lightly as he saw their hands still connected.

“Look, Brother.” Benny said as both Castiel and Dean turned their attention over to him, “People will like you okay, and if they don’t, then they are missing out. You know more than half of the class in there and if you heard everything Dean has told me about you, you would have more confidence in yourself.”

“See.” Dean said as he moved his body so that he was sitting beside Castiel, wrapping one arm around the smaller boy’s shoulders as he leant his head down onto Dean’s shoulder.

“But Dean, what if I can’t do it, what am I going to do?” Castiel said, closing  his eyes as he turned his head further, burying himself in the crook of Dean’s neck, his breath evening slightly as he felt Dean’s hand rubbing gently over his back.

“Come on, babe.” He said as he continued to calm Castiel. Stopping in his motions when he felt Castiel tense lightly below him. “What’s wrong?”

“Babe?” he asks quietly.

“What’s up, you don’t like it?” Castiel only shake his head gently in response, earning a small chuckle from Dean, one Castiel could feel resonating from within his chest and throughout his body. “Okay then, how about _T’hy’la_?” Dean asked, a bright smile spreading across his face as he heard a soft giggle from Castiel.

“Much better.” Castiel sighed, closing his eyes to only focus on Dean’s soft, gentle touch, only brought out of their moment when there was loud coughing around them.

“What?” Both asked as they saw three faces and six sets of eyes all trained upon them both, mouths lightly agape.

“What the hell do you mean _‘what’_? Look at you both, ‘babe’, ‘T’hy’la’, your freaking hands for heaven’s sake. Were you actually going to tell us?” Jo laughed as she saw the blush creeping up both boys necks and over onto their cheeks.

“ _Cassie and Dean._ ” Charlie began to sing as the others began to laugh, keeping their gazes on the two boys’.

“There’s nothing to tell.” Dean said eventually. “Cas and I, you know. And that is it.” And with that the conversation ended, Charlie continued her conversation between Benny and Jo, the three laughing about some show they were all watching while Castiel slipped back, resting his head in Dean’s lap while Dean continued to stroke his hand through Castiel’s hair.

“This is gonna be okay, you know that right, Cas?” Dean asked after a moment’s silence, smiling comfortingly when Castiel's large blue eyes opened to stare up into Dean’s own.

“It really isn’t though.” He said again, absentmindedly playing with the hem of his top.

“Cas, I am gonna be there with you, I will be standing with you the whole time. Don’t focus on anyone else, just on me or Benny, okay?” he said, his hand moving through Castiel’s hair to cup the boy’s cheek as he leant down to press a soft kiss to his lips. When he pulled away moments later, the smile on Castiel’s face was evident that he had managed to alleviate some of the stress, and for that he was so very thankful. “Hey, you wanna come around tonight? Mom and Dad are going out of town for the weekend, so it’s just gonna be me and Sammy, and the kid likes you.” Dean blurted while Castiel smiled up at him.

“I would love to.” He said softly in reply, jumping slightly when he heard the bell ringing, pulling them from their silence.

“You ready?” Dean asked as Castiel helped him to his feet, passing him each crutch in concession.

“Not at all.” Castiel murmured, blushing as Dean took a hold of one of his hands.

“I’m afraid we can’t walk like this, or I’m probably gonna end up hurting you.” Dean complained. “But you can bet when we sit down, I am gonna hold the hell out of your hand.” He winked over at Castiel who blushed, a small chuckle emitting from him as thy made their way towards their classroom.

When they were finally at the door of the room, they were upon the first few to enter, looking around, Castiel held his breath slightly, following Dean to the back of the room where he fell into the seat first, Castiel following behind. As soon as Dean’s crutches fell to the floor, his hand flew over to Castiel’s, intertwining their fingers as he looked over, kissing Castiel on the cheek.

“See, I’m always gonna keep my promises with you.” Dean reminded Castiel, squeezing his hand for comfort as more people began to enter the room. He finished his comment whispering “T’hy’la.” In Castiel’s ear.

“Thank you, Dean.” Castiel croaked. Looking away from the others entering the room, he looked back over to Dean “Can we watch Star Trek tonight?” he asked quietly, seeing the smile across Dean’s face at the mention of the series.

“Sure thing, I’m sure Sammy won’t mind.” He declared.

By the time the final bell rung, the room was full of chattering students and a teacher at the front trying to silence them all. All the while, Dean kept a tight hold on Castiel’s hand, his thumb running across his palm in the efforts to calm the boy before they were to complete their presentation.

“Silence in the courthouse!” Mrs Patel commanded loudly, the entirety of the class immediately lowering their voices and ceasing their conversations. “I hope you have all prepared your presentations for today. I am going to play the part of the judge, now normally there would be a jury, but in this case, you are to impress simply me, maybe on another date we will take this all the way, we will have some to be the jury, witnesses, victims and defendants, but that is all for another day.” She concluded.

Hearing this, Castiel turned his head to the right, looking straight at Dean, his eyes wide as Dean continued to stroke his hand, offering a small, reassuring smile to him as Castiel smiled gently in return.

“Right, who has got the case of Roberts and William?” Seeing four raise their hands, she gestured for them to walk to the front where they began the presentation.

This continued throughout the majority of the class, the students stepping forth to complete their presentation whilst others listened in great detail.

That all continued until Castiel and Dean were called forward, Dean looked over to Castiel whose breath had increased once more, his palms beginning  to perspire until Dean moved his head slightly closer “Come on Cas, this is us now. Don’t worry, I got you.”

Slowly, Castiel rose to his feet, feeling all the eyes of the room on him, his eyes darted to the door, making a plan of how he could escape until Dean grasped a hold of his sleeve so Castiel was forced to look back down at the green eyed boy with a sloppy smile on his face.

“You just gonna leave me here.” Dean asked with a smile, watching as Castiel slowly reached back down to pull him to his feet.

“Are you not going to get your crutches?” Castiel countered quietly, knowing that all eyes were on them, his back feeling as though it were on fire.

“Nah, it’s all good, that’s what I got you for.” Dean informed Castiel, taking a hold of Castiel’s hand and wrapping it around his waist so that he could aid him in the small trek from their seats to the front of the classroom.

“You're infuriating. You know that?” Castiel stated with a small smile as he watched Dean continue to hobble, almost all thoughts of the class around them wiped from his mind.

“Yeah, but that’s why you _like me._ ” Dean jibed, nudging Castiel in the ribs, proud when he heard a small laugh escape the boy’s lips.

“I guess.” Was the final thing the blue eyed boy said before they turned around to see the class all staring at them, many with wide eyes as they saw the close proximity between the two.

A few comments swarmed the room, ranging from “I knew it.”, “Look at how cute they are.” To “Winchesters gay? Huh. Who’d have known.” But that comment was quickly squashed when Dean spoke aloud, simply saying “Bisexual actually.” And laughing when he saw many faces turn red at the realisation they were not as quiet as they had first thought. “Now, if that is all…” Dean continued, taking a look over to his teacher who nodded her head gently “I wanna get this thing over with. Unless people have more questions about my relationship.” When there was no response, he concluded by saying “Right, well let’s get this show on the road then.”

“Thank you for that Mr. Winchester. Now, if you two are ready, you may proceed.” She said gesturing to the expanse of room in front of her, Castiel and Dean slowly making their way forward to stand in the centre.

“The case we have been presented with follows the death of a young soldier who was stabbed, and once in the hospital received the incorrect treatment. He later died.” Dean began, gesturing to Castiel who was still clutching to him. “You got this T’hy’la.” He whispered so that no others were able to hear, rejoicing in the small smile he saw cross Castiel’s lips.

 Hearing Dean’s voice and his gentle touch was enough to calm Castiel on the outside, though on the inside, he was still battling with the predicament in front of them. Looking around him, he saw the numerous faces staring back at him; many of them were looking down at something else or their phones, secretly glad that it meant less faces looking at him, and less people to have to actually speak to. Looking further around the room, he saw Benny’s smiling face looking back at him, holding his thumbs up to Castiel, Castiel smiling at the encouragement while Dean nudged him gently.

“See, you're gonna be fine, but you gotta say something first.” Dean whispered to Castiel, seeing the shocked look across his face at the realisation he had been staring around the room while everyone else was awaiting their presentation.

“Yes, sorry. I um, I…” he stumbled, trying to remember what it was they were going to say. “Um, this case revolves around the fight that ensured between two, between two soldiers in which the defendant stabbed the victim.” He stumbled quietly over a few words, looking to his side, he saw Dean smiling softly at him while he took his hand in his own, holding it behind their backs so that others could not see it, a small gesture of comfort.

“You're doin’ great. You know that right? And I can jump in any time you need me to. Just look at Benny or the wall.” He whispered to Castiel, squeezing his hand gently before castiel began to talk again, a little louder than before.

“Unbeknownst to all, the stab wound the victim had received had in fact punctured his lung, causing a great deal of blood loss. The victim was then taken to the hospital via ambulance, though was dropped twice before actually entering the medical centre.  Once within, the attending doctor was dealing with numerous emergencies and failed to notice the pierced lung, from this he tried artificial respiration which in fact did not revive him, whist also failing to perform a saline blood transfusion which was therefore medically speaking, a gross error on the doctor’s behalf. An hour after the incident occurred, the victim was pronounced dead.

“With correct treatment, it is estimated that the survival rate to a similar incident would be at seventy-five per cent. Arguments could be made to say that there is still that twenty five per cent by which his death would have been seen as not being due to malpractice.

Though this case would still potentially find the fleece dang guilty of the victim’s death considering the fact that the stabbing wound was the operating and substantial cause of his death.” Castile finished, his palms sweating, though feeling slightly calm on the basis of Dean still having a tight grip on his hand, the thumb running across it in a reassuring gesture.

“There're a number of cases that would be used to define this judgement.” Dean began, taking off from where Castiel had finished. “The main would be R v Smith which followed similar circumstances, which set out the boundaries for legal causation which is the basis of this case at hand. The test set out was to find the link between the defendants act and criminal consequence. This was proven through the stabbing being the link; this caused the internal bleeding and the punctured lung which was the criminal consequence. Had he not stabbed the defendant then none of this would have occurred, leaving the defendant to be found guilty of the victims death through the stabbing being the operating and substantial cause, though also more than minimal.” Dean concluded, looking to his side to see Castiel beaming at him. “That's right. I got this too.” He joked, whispering quietly.

“Well, Mr. Novak and Mr. Winchester, I believe you have just won your case.” Mrs Patel stated, watching as Dean turned back to Castiel, a smile beaming brightly across his features.

“I told you it would be fine!” Dean whispered in Castiel’s ear as he hugged the boy to him, watching as Castiel smiled brightly back, slowly helping Dean back to their seats, not even noticing the eyes from a few students that were trained on them.

“Lafitte and Summers, you’re up next” Castiel heard the names being called from the front of the room.

Looking up, he saw Benny standing from his seat, “Good luck.” He said as encouragement to the boy.

“Don’t need it, but thanks anyway brother.” Benny said in all sincerity, winking as he turned to walk to the front of the class, the strength and confidence obvious from his stance and demeanour.

“See, that is the confidence I need.” Castiel whispered to Dean, gesturing at Benny who was standing in front of the class with his partner, both deep in the topic of their case.

“No, that is Benny, the dude has always been confident in everything ever since I met him.” Dean observed. “But, if you do want to be more confident, I could always try and help you? We can work on it together, you and me.”

Castiel turned his head to stare straight at Dean “You would do that, for me?” Castiel questioned.

“Of course I would.” Dean smiled, throwing his arms around Castiel’s shoulders, pulling him into his side with a soft sigh. “You’re my _boyfriend_ , I’d do anything for you _T’hy’la._ ” Dean whispered to Castiel, watching as the boy smiled back at him, leaning into his touch.

“Thank you Dean, for everything.” He mumbled, turning his attention back to the presentation in front of him, with Benny stating to the death of a young male hit by a driver.

The class continued in that same way, listening to the last few presentations before the bell rung signalising the end of the school day and the beginning of the weekend.

“You ready to go?” Dean asked once all of the others had left the room, Castiel helping him to his feet and putting each arm into the crutches.

“Always.” He said with a soft kiss to Dean’s lips, a small giggle escaping as they slowly parted.

“What was that?” Dean asked with a sly grin.

“N-nothing. Are you ready to leave now?” he repeated Dean’s question.

“Always.” Dean rebound as Castiel took a hold of his back pack, slinging it over his shoulder alongside his own. “Whatcha doin’?”

“Walking to the North Pole, I hear it is a lovely place to see this time of year. Care to join me?” Castiel said with a laugh as they continued to move forward. “I’m helping, what does it look like…”

“Um, you don’t have to do that Cas; I can carry my own bag you know.”

“I do know. But what I also know is that your leg is hurting more than you are willing to let anyone know, and because you are a stubborn shit, you won’t say anything, and that this bag dragging on your back is not doing much in ways of helping alleviate that pain. So that is what I can do. You helped me, now let me return the favour.”

Hearing Castiel say that, he did not know how to reply, it was true that his leg was hurting, and he knew himself to be stubborn, though people did not usually see through the façade he had up to cover all emotions, but apparently Castiel could see through that.

“Fine, but you say anything to anyone, and you are dead.” He laughed, as they continued to make their way through the school and towards the busses.

Once they were in front of their bus, Castiel stood to the side letting Dean walk ahead of him, laughing as he heard Dean say “You just lettin’ me go first so you got a good view of my ass.”  He said happily, shaking his backside to the best of his ability with both hands in crutches, and if the laugh Castiel emitted was anything to go by, it was in fact a failed attempt.

“Oh you know that is the only reason I stick around with you.” Castiel said in response once they were both standing on the bus, Castiel taking his seat next to Charlie and offering a small smile before Dean moved further back, greeted by Jo and Benny, and immediately divulging into a heated conversation.

Between Castiel and Charlie, the conversation never dulled, Castiel recounted their argument and that they had won, from which Charlie congratulated him, while she told Castiel about the art project she had completed, taking aspects of the Hobbit and Lord of the Rings, and making one large piece, telling a controversial story which she promised to show on Monday. Finally, Castiel told her that he was going back to Dean’s tonight in which she mocked lightly, pleased nevertheless that he best friend had found someone that he could connect with on another level as deeply as with Dean.

When the bus eventually came to a halt at their stop, Castiel jumped off with Charlie following closely behind, throwing a smile over his shoulder to Dean who offered a wink and in return was rewarded with a deep blush spreading through the younger boy’s cheeks.

“Hey, what are you doing on Sunday?” Charlie asked as they took a slow stroll from the bus to their own respective houses.

“I do not believe I have anything planned, why do you ask?”

“There’s a new bookshop opening in town, and you know new always means something free and discounts.” She said with a laugh, linking their arms together as they continued to walk at a leisurely pace. “And then, we can go to the cinema and get some food.”

“As long as we can go to the music store too?” he asked, neither bothering to move their gazes as they spoke.

“Of course.” The conversation continued slowly throughout the remainder of their walk, neither feeling the need to fill the space with words, though to instead enjoy their surroundings as they presented themselves, to bask in the sunlight that shone above.

When they eventually went their respective ways, Castiel continued to wander, not picking up the pace at all, simply thinking, about nothing in particular, just over the events of the past week, his stomach beginning to flutter whenever he thought of the green eyed boy, and a soft smile whenever he thought of the auburn haired girl.

After closing the front door behind him, he silently toed his shoes off of his feet, slowly walking through the house and past the kitchen, on his way past, his eyes averted to look inside, only to be met with two grown men fighting over a wooden spoon.

“You licked the bowl, the spoon is mine!”

“You didn’t leave anything in the bowl! There were barely three licks worth in there, no way do you deserve all of this on the spoon.” He said gesturing to said spoon in his hand, thickly covered in a dark, chocolatey mixture.

“Why don’t you just leave the spoon and make a small amount of batter in a separate bowl and eat that. That way you get more than you would from the spoon.” Castiel interjected, making his presence known to both who quickly turned to see the small boy standing in the doorway with a soft, fond smile on his face.

“But he already had three licks!” Lucifer complained waving the spoon in the air, laughing as some of the mixture flew from the spoon; landing on Castiel’s left cheek, just below his eye.

“You take three licks and then put the spoon in the sink and we have a fair agreement.” Castiel said wiping the drop of mixture from his face before licking it off of his fixture, smiling at the realisation of Lucifers brownie mixture. “You're making brownies?” he asked, looking around the kitchen to see every surface covered in flower, butter, egg, cocoa powder and every other ingredient that was used alongside the sink being piled sky high with used cutlery, bowls and pans.

“Fine I suppose we could make more brownies, if we really must.” Lucifer said, even though there was a bright smile just waiting to burst through.

“Hey, can I stay at Dean’s tonight?” Castiel asked as he remembered.

“But we made brownies.” Lucifer said with a pout, gesturing to the oven that showed ten minutes left.

“Let the kid go, we are making more now, he can take them with him and then the world will know of your expertise with a spoon.” Michael said with a laugh, dipping his finger into the batter and wiping it across Lucifer’s upper lip to create a chocolate moustache.

“Fine.” Lucifer reluctantly agreed.  “But tell me one thing; what is happening with you guys now, he finally ask you out, you finally ask him out, or is it just a friends with benefits kind of thing. And if that is the case, I suggest talking to your brother here about it.” He said with a laugh, nudging Michael whose face began to redden at what he had said, causing Lucifer to only laugh harder and Castiel to blush also at the realisation of what his brother was referring to.

“No, Dean and I are not friends with benefits, Lucifer! As a matter of fact, he asked me out the other day, thank you very much.” He said, defending himself from the embarrassment, though also aiming to diverge from any conversation regarding friends with benefits.

“Ha! I knew it!” Gabriel said with a laugh as he made his way forward from behind Castiel. “You two have been way to close, and all this talk of ‘the great Dean Winchester being gay’.”

“Bisexual actually.” Castiel muttered quietly.

“That’s exactly what everyone else was saying after someone said he was gay.”

“Cas, I am glad we all know where the two of you stand.” Michael said clapping the younger boy on the shoulder. “Now, when do you plan to bring him home, properly introduce us to the boy rather than singing Mulan with him. I want a sit down meal in which I am going to quiz this boy. All brotherly duties employed.” He continued, the grin becoming evident on his face.

“Oh, that means we are going to get to join in too.” Lucifer commented, high-fiving Gabriel while sticking his tongue out at Castiel, earning a laugh from the younger boy.

“Well not tonight. I am going to go and get my bag now while your brownies burn.” He said simply, turning on his heel and walking out of the room while he heard Michael and Lucifer swearing and rushing around, alongside Gabriel asking about ‘brownies, what brownies?’

Once he had made his way through the house and into his room, he slowly closed the door behind him, removing the sound of his brothers and leaving him standing alone, in silence. Moving his way over, he pushed his bag onto the bed, emptying the equipment and books from within to replace with clothing; a pair of jeans, a top, a wash bag, socks, underwear and pyjama bottoms. Closing the bag, he took his phone out of his pocket to see there was one unread message. Unlocking the device, he smiled at the sight of the contact name;

**_\- When you coming over? Mom and Dad are leaving at seven, you can come at any time, I’m sure they would love to see you. As would I. see you soon Cas._ **

_From Dean, received 16:48._

Reading through the message, he thought through his next movements, looking back at the packed bag on the bed and smelling the sweet scent of chocolate seeping through the rooms, he closed his eyes breathing deeply though his nostrils to smell the sweet cake filling his body, his stomach grumbling for the desert.

**_\- I’ll be over soon if that is okay with you._ **

_To Dean, sent 16:59._

Within minutes of having sent the message, he felt the familiar sensation of the device vibrating within his pocket.

**_\- shut up, whenever is fine you know that. Can’t wait for you to get here. Mom left money for food too. Now get your ass down here already, I miss that pretty face._ **

_From Dean, received 17:01._

Castiel smiled down at his phone, the message he had read, reading it over and over again, seeing the last part making his stomach do flips, the prospect that someone might miss him.

**_\- I should be there in half an hour or so, okay. And then you can see this face throughout. How is your leg, do you need anything bringing? Michael is a doctor, I am sure we will have something if needs be? I only wish you to be well._ **

_To Dean, sent 17:05._

**_\- Just you is fine Cas._ **

_From Dean, received 17:08_

Taking his bag, he made his way back through the house, down the stairs and into the kitchen where Michael and Lucifer were still bickering while Gabriel stood back smirking, watching his brothers as he continued to lick the chocolatey spoon clean.

“I’m going to leave now.” Castiel said, announcing his presence once again as all three heads whipped around to look at him.

“I’ll drive you.” Michael offered.

“You do not need to do that, I believe I know the route now.”

“Nonsense Castiel, now get your ass over here while I clean up.” He commented, pushing the bowl back onto the countertop where Lucifer quickly grabbed it.

 “Pass me the box, and don’t forget about the ones in the oven, and you better not eat them all before I get back, or your both grounded.” Michael threatened with a light tone in his voice, passing the aforementioned box over to Castiel. “Come on then brother mine, I believe we have a boyfriend to deliver you to.” And with that the two were out of the house and making their way into the car.

“Have you got everything you need, did you want to stop at the store on the way?” Michael asked as he began the engine of the car, looking over to Castiel for confirmation.

“Can we get some ice cream? You have to have ice cream with Lucifer’s brownies.” Castiel replied, holding the box tightly in his arms as he watched the road ahead of them pass him by.

“Of course we can, I was going to get some for us as well, and some drinks and snacks, is there anything else you want getting?”

“Well, if you're offering…” Castiel said happily, knowing that his brother would buy him anything they wanted, one of the benefits of living together now, the atmosphere was much lighter and he got on pleasantly with his brothers.

“Of course I am you ass. Wouldn’t have asked otherwise, now would i.” Michael responded, nudging the younger boy in the ribs as they eventually stopped in the car park, making their way into the store.

After twenty minutes, the pair finally made their way back out of the shop, Castiel carrying a large bag while Michael was weighed down with one in each hand. “Do you really think you are going to need all of that?” Castiel had asked Michael while he crammed the bags into the back of the car, taking out a biscuit for each.

“Of course we do Cas. What if there is an earthquake and we are stuck inside, we are going to need some sugar to keep our hopes high. And anyway, I did not hear you complaining when you put that bottle of coke, tub of ice cream and numerous bags of chocolates and sweets into the cart.”

“Fine.” Castiel said with a smile, his mind focusing solely on spending the entire night wit Dean, being able to do whatever they wanted, but also the brownies, Lucifer’s brownies were the best they had had, and he couldn’t wait to share them with Dean, alongside the numerous snacks they would now have.

“Hey Cas, we’re here.” Michael said, breaking him out of his thoughts to see that they were in fact parked in front of the Winchester residence.

“Thank you for the food and the lift Mike, I will tell you when I am on my way home tomorrow.” Castiel rushed out, pushing the door open and jumping out of the car, excited to finally be there.

“Hey, not too fast kiddo.” Michael said with a chuckle. “I’ll walk you to the door, say hello to Dean, and his parents.”

“No Michael, please, it is okay, I can do this.”

“Nonsense brother, I would like to finally meet his parents.” Michael insisted as they were almost at the door, standing to the side while Castiel knocked on the door, it swinging open moments later to a pleased boy, hobbling on one foot to stand up.

“Cas!” the green eyed boy greeted him, pulling him into a tight hug which Castiel greedily accepted, putting his hands on the other boy’s waist to steady him as they pulled apart. “Michael?” He asked in slight confusion.

“Hello Dean, how is the leg treating you? I assume you are not putting weight on it and are keeping it elevated?” Michael assessed, watching the way his hands had snaked around Castiel’s waist to offer more stability.

“Yeah.” He replied easily. “Cas has been making sure of that.” he said fondly, placing a soft, chaste kiss on the smaller boy’s cheek. Watching as his face suddenly coloured to resemble that of a tomato his eyes looking anywhere but Michael’s.

“Dean honey, who’s at the door?” a soft female voice spoke, breaking them all form their conversation to see a blonde woman approaching. “Castiel dear, how lovely to see you again!” she greeted him with a soft smile. “And who might I ask is this?” she said motioning towards the taller man in the doorway.

“Michael Novak, mam.” He replied easily, outstretching his arm towards her which she accepted, shaking his hand as he clarified. “I am Castiel’s older brother.”

“Ah, it’s lovely to finally meet you; Castiel spoke fondly of all of his siblings the last time he was here.”

“Oh yes, he just loves us that much, don’t you Cassie.” He mocked, leaning forward to squeeze his brother’s cheek, earning a laugh from everyone around the door. “It was lovely to meet you Mrs. Winchester, but I am afraid I must leave or we will end up with melted ice cream in the boot and then my other siblings will kill me when I return.”

“Of course, let me walk you to the car.” She said, gesturing towards the pathway as she made her way past the two boys still holding onto one another.

“Oh Dean, no strenuous activity, don’t want you to injure your leg any further.” Michael whispered to him, low enough that Mary could not hear, though not quite low enough that Castiel did not hear him, blushing furiously as Dean simply winked back, the other boy laughing as he began talking with Mary.

“Hey, I think my mom likes your brother.” Dean said into Castiel’s ear, his arms tightening around his waist as he moved his body so that they were standing face to face, moving his head lower to place a soft kiss to Castiel’s lips. “You gonna come in now then?”

“Of course, I apologise.” Castiel said as he helped Dean walking through the house. “Um, I know you said just to bring myself, but Lucifer and Michael had made brownies, and they are amazing, so they told me to bring some, and then Michael and I stopped off on the way here for I was not sure if you had ice cream, and you need ice cream with the brownies, so we bought that, and then some other food.” Castiel finished, gesturing to the bag over his shoulder and the other in his arms.

“Cas dude, don’t be sorry, I love food, you’re welcome to feed me whenever you want.” Dean informed him with a laugh and a wink.

“Of course you do. But what do you want me to do with my things?” Castiel questioned, holding the two separate bags up.

“Well, food you can put in the kitchen, I’m guessin’ the ice creams gotta go in the freezer, the rest just leave on the side or in here, wherever you wanna, and your bag you can leave that in here or shove it in my room, it really don’t matter. Actually, leave it down here for now; we can watch a film or somethin’ down here for a bit.” Dean grunted, twisting lightly on his foot

“Come here you ass, sit down.” Castiel sighed, dropping the bags to the floor as he wrapped his arms tighter around the boy, helping him hop over to the sofa before gently pushing him back down onto it. “Sit, I’ll go put the bag away, you heard what Michael said.” He responded, leaning down to press a soft kiss to the others lips before pulling away just as fast and making his way out of the room, chuckling at the unhappy noises Dean was making.

“Castiel.” John greeted him as he picked the bags up from the floor, smiling back.

“Hello Mr. Winchester, I was just going to put this in the kitchen, Dean is sitting down at the moment.”

“You finally got him to sit eh. You will get him to rest this weekend, he’s been up and down, around and about, hobbling from room to room since he got home trying to get everythin’ ready for you guys, kids worn himself out but won’t admit it.” John huffed, following Castiel as they walked into the kitchen.

“Of course, Michael, my older brother, has already told him that he needs to rest and keep the leg elevated, no ‘strenuous activities’, as he phrased it, so I shall indeed make sure he rests.” Castiel reassured him, watching as the man helped to empty the bag.

“You tryin’ to feed an army.” John laughed, noting the vast amount of food.

“I do suppose my brother may have gone a little overboard. They were making brownies when I got home and insisted I bring some so we had to buy ice cream as I was not sure whether you had any, and that turned into a few other items too. Would you like a brownie?” Castiel offered, pushing the tub towards the man who eagerly took one out, taking a large bite.

“Well I’m sure Dean’ll eat a lot of it.” The man commented with a chuckle.

 _“_ That I do not doubt. _”_ Castiel agreed, relishing in the fondness the man shared for him already, similar to a father figure he never had other than his brothers, though this was something different, something he needed, something he now had.

“Thank you for the brownie, and you should thank your brother too, tell him he is welcome to share them any time, though I am sorry but I had better go find Mary, we should be leavin’ soon.” John finished, patting Castiel on the shoulder as he made his way past the boy and further into the house, calling “Sam!” until he was met with an answer.

When Castiel finally made his way back into the living room, returning to Dean, he threw himself onto the sofa beside the boy, sighing contently as Dean wrapped an arm around his shoulder, pulling him closer as he kissed his temple.

“You okay?” Dean asked, breaking the silence that had fallen between them.

“Yes thank you, I am good.” Castiel yawned, intertwining their fingers together, smiling as Dean began rubbing his thumb over his hand before yawning again, resting his head in the crook of Dean’s shoulder.

“You tired?” Dean mused.

“No- _yawn-_ just a long day I guess.” He mumbled between yawns.

“Yeah, I guess. But it’s over now and you were great, I’m proud of you Cas.” He praised, moving his free hand to card through the boy’s short hair. “You wanna take a nap or somethin’?”

“Can we not just sit here and watch that film you were talking about? I like sitting with you, you are comforting.” Castiel answered honestly.

“Sure we can Cas. You wanna lie down instead? It’ll be much more comfortable.” He offered.

“Yes please.”

“Come on then.” Dean urged, twisting himself as Castiel stood so that he was lying down, putting his arms around the boy’s waist, never disconnecting their hands as they moved to a more comfortable position beside one another. “Your right you know, I am comfortable, but so are you.” Dean said with a laugh, pushing his back against the sofa whilst tightening his arm around Castiel, smiling down as he heard the hoy humming contently.

“I said comforting, not comfortable, though I suppose you are that also.” Castiel commented as he twisted his body slightly so that he was able to face Dean.

“You know it’s true. I’m everyone’s favourite.” He smirked, leaning forward to connect their lips, one hand travelling up to cup Castiel’s face. Both boys sighing happily into the kiss as they pushed themselves closer, hands travelling across bodies, Castiel’s hands moving to rest above Dean’s hip.

“Let the boy go, that’s no way to greet your guests.” Came a gruff voice as both quickly moved away from one another, Castiel pushing himself from Dean and almost falling off of the sofa before the boy tightened his rip, keeping them together.

“M-Mr. Singer!” Castiel spluttered, looking up to see two men and two women, all with knowing smiles across their faces as they looked down at the two boys.

“What are you doing here Bobby?” dean asked, moving himself to try and sit up until he fell back, realising the weight of the raven haired boy was keeping him put, so instead settled for staying put

“Karen and I thought we would give your mom and dad a visit before they left and see how your doin’. But apparently we’re interrupting somethin’.” He observed, smirking down at the boys. “And you-” he said pointing at Castiel “what have I told you in class, its Bobby ya Idgit.”

“Sorry Bobby.” Castiel addressed the man, giggling as he felt Dean’s hand grazing his ribs. “Stop that, you ass.” He growled lowly at Dean who simply smirked in response.

“This is Cas?” Said the blonde haired woman standing beside Bobby, a soft smile on her face as she looked fondly down at the two boys. “Dean’s been tellin’ us all about you, won’t stop in fact.”  She blurted, continuing to stare down at them, beaming as she saw their interlaced hands. “I’m happy for you Dean. Bobby-“ she said diverting her attention to the surprised man beside her, “-you go and help John pack the car, I’ll help Mary to finish, give the boys a little peace.” And with that they all dispersed, leaving Castiel to stare into the space they once stood.

 “Bobby’s my godfather, and that Karen, his wife. She makes a damn good pie.” He commented, bringing Castiel’s attention back to him as he pulled the boy onto him so that he was lying with his back to the cushions and Castiel inadvertently straddling his waist.

“I missed you.” Dean breathed against Castiel’s lips, their foreheads resting against one another’s as they finally pulled away.

“We saw each other only a few hours ago.”

“Yeah, well that’s a few hours too long.” Dean

“You're such a sap.” Castiel laughed, falling down and laying his head against Dean’s chest, listening to the steady heartbeat.

“Maybe, but I’m your sap now.” He said fondly, carding his hands through the boy’s hair once more. “Hey, I’m gonna put that film on now.” Dean commented as he turned the television on.

“Mhm.” Castiel mumbled, snuggling further into Dean’s body. “Put on whatever you want.”

“Oh don’t worry, I’m gonna choose.” He said with a laugh, kissing the boy’s forehead softly as he continued to flick through the channels.

“Mhm, whatever you want.”

“Hey, look! They have a Doctor Who episode going, you alright with this now?”

“Of course. Just give me your body.” He mumbled, laying himself closer to Dean, snaking his arms around his waist.

“Hey, you gotta buy me dinner before any of that talk.” Dean said with a laugh, steadying Castiel against him, finding comfort in the warmth his body provided, distracting him from the pain in his leg.

“Mhm, dinner. Mashed potato.” He chittered into Dean’s skin.

It was only minutes into the show when Dean looked down to see the younger boy curled on his body, his eyes gently closed, breathing softly through his mouth. Dean could not help but smile at the sight before him, the peaceful serenity he felt just looking at him, feeling his hot breath on his neck.

“Hey Dean!” John inquired as he entered the room, walking to the back of the sofa where Dean was quick to make a quiet motion, gesturing to the sleeping boy.

“What did you do to the kid?” John mused.

“Nothing, he’s had a hard day, we had that law presentation, he’s been crappin’ himself about it all week. I don’t think he got much sleep either.” Dean whispered in response.

“Okay, well your mother and I are going to leave now, you're sure you're gonna be okay here alone? Sam’s gonna be back tomorrow afternoon he said, how long is Cas stayin’? I don’t want you here alone.” John insisted, keeping his voice quiet though all the same.

“I dunno, I’m sure he’ll stay until Sammy gets home.”

“Alright, I’ll get your mother to come in now, Bobby and Karen are gonna leave now too.”

“Alright.”

“Well isn’t he just adorable.” Mary sighed as she walked behind her son.

“Don’t say that mom.” Dean complained, pink tinting his cheeks as he looked down to the sleeping boy.

“It’s true… anyway, you tell Castiel that it was lovely to see him, and that the brownies are very good. And you,” she said pointing her finger to Dean, “You let other people help you or so help me, we will drive back and I will not leave your side until that cast is removed. Do you hear me?” she threatened.

“Yes mom, Cas does help me, and were just gonna watch some films, eat and sleep, really, there’s not gonna be a party or anythin’, were just gonna have a quiet weekend.” He promised, lifting his arms from below the boy to hug his mother, sighing with a smile as he felt Castiel tightening his grip and wriggling slightly.

“You make sure that is all that happens. We’ll ring when we get there, okay. And if you need anything, you call Bobby or Karen, they’ll be here quickly, or even call Cas or Ellen, okay. Anyone, I don’t want you putting yourself in harm’s way. And make sure you keep that gun loaded.” She finished, saying the last part in a hushed tone.

“Yes ma’am.” Dean saluted, seeing a smile brought to his mother’s lips.

“And were going to drop Sam off on our way, do you want me to bring you anything in before we leave?” she queried, her eyes lingering on the sleeping form above her son.

“Can we have a drink? I don’t think I’m gonna be getting up for a while.” Dean observed with a soft laugh, seeing his mother smile at the sight.

“Of course, I’ll bring some snacks in too, ready for when Castiel wakes.” She said as she left the room, returning moments later with two glasses and a plate of assortments.

“Thanks mom.” Dean beamed, taking a crisp off of the plate and popping it into his mouth.

“Okay darling, well we must be leaving now if we are to get there in time to eat something. You are sure that you will be okay?” she bugged, placing her hand on her sons forehead to check his temperature.

“I’ll be fine mom, Cas is here. He’ll know what to do.” He reassured her as she leant down for a final hug.

“As long as you are sure. We won’t be long, we should be back by Sunday night okay, and I’ll ring you later love.”

“Have a nice time.” Dean said with a smile, kissing his mother on her cheek before they left the room.

* * *

It was an hour later before Castiel awoke, registering first the heat radiating from below him, then the tight arm wrapped around his middle and finally the sound being generated from the television. “Dean?” he mumbled as he opened his eyes, looking into the green eyes that were staring straight back at him.

“Yeah, I’m here Cas.” Dean soothed, their lips connecting briefly as Castiel lifted his head higher to meet Dean’s own.

“Where is everyone?”

“They left about an hour ago. You want some food?” he offered, holding up the half empty plate to the boy. “Sorry, got a little hungry.” He mumbled, looking down to the remaining food.

“It is fine Dean, would you like for me to make us some tea? I am good with a kitchen; my brothers taught me how to cook.” Castiel countered, moving himself onto his elbows so that he was hovering above the other.

“As much as I love the thought of you cooking for me,” Dean mused, smiling into the eyes of the boy above him, “can we just order somethin’ instead, you can choose, pizza, Chinese, Indian, whatever you want.”

“Can we have both?” Castiel asked with a bright grin, “We can order some Indian food and then some Chinese food, we can get spring rolls and naan bread with it all.”

“Sure thing Cas. Go into the kitchen and in one of the cupboards, the one with salt in it, there are a load of menus. Just grab ‘em and bring ‘em in, we can choose from there.”

“Of course Dean, would you like me to get you a drink while I am in there?”

“Nah, I’m good thanks Cas, mum brought us some in before she went.” He said motioning towards the table which sure enough held two glasses, one full and the other only half so.

“Can we watch a film now?” Castiel asked as he fell back onto the sofa, handing Dean the menus and snuggling into the boy’s side, ghosting his fingers across the others stomach.

“You sure you don’t just want to go to bed man? You seemed pretty tired…” Dean offered, twisting his fingers with Castiel’s, leaning in for a short kiss.

“No thank you, Dean. I feel very awake now.” The boy countered, resting his head upon Dean’s shoulder as they disconnected their lips, hands still as one.

“Alright, you wanna choose a film while I look through this? Oh, what do you want to eat?”

“Anything is fine thank you Dean, as long as it is not spicy nor does it have fish involved.”

“Oh, a surprise it is then!” Dean declared, smiling down.

Castiel laughed softly while he was looking through the films available before turning back up to Dean with a bright smile. “Can we watch this?” he asked.

“Cas, I told you, we can watch whatever you want.”

“You're sure?” he asked once more before Dean leant down close to his face, nodding his own head lightly before sticking his tongue out, essentially ‘bopping’ Castiel’s nose with his tongue.

“You're disgusting.” Castiel said with a laugh, bringing his hand to his face to wipe away the saliva.

“You say that, but we both know you love my tongue.” Dean taunted, leaning back down to kiss Castiel, his tongue slowly leaving his own mouth, licking across the seam of Castiel’s lips before the boy slowly opened them, allowing Dean entrance. With a smirk on his lips, Dean swiftly moved his tongue into Castiel’s mouth, slowly exploring the regions available to him, smiling down as he managed to coax a small moan from the boy below.

They only pulled away from the other when they were running out of oxygen, Dean still smirking as he caught his breath. “I think those noises prove my point.” Dean chuckled, winking at Castiel who promptly began to redden.

“Shut up.” Castiel groaned, digging his head back into Dean’s chest, a soft giggle falling from his lips.

“Don’t be embarrassed. I like them.” Dean assured him, stroking his hands through Castiel’s head as he looked back to the menus.

After a few minutes of searching, Dean declared “I know what we are having.” Smiling down at the boy who had finally pulled his head from his body to look back up to Dean’s eyes. “Hands over your ears while I order though.” He ordered, pulling his phone from his pocket as he began to dial the number.

“You're being serous?” Castiel chuckled, though followed the orders as he saw the pointed look Dean gave him.

“Thank you.” Dean whispered as the phone began to ring.

* * *

After the two had finished eating their meal and watching the film, both completely twisted within the warmth of the other, they finally and slowly made their way through the house and up to Dean’s room, Castiel with his bag on his back, food included, while he used his arms around Dean to help the other boy walking around.

They both brushed their teeth together, smiling at the other in the mirror with a tooth brush in their mouth, Dean smiling fondly at the domesticity of the situation while Castiel began to dribble lightly from the corner of his mouth, causing Dean to think of something inappropriate and promptly begin spluttering, choking slightly on the minty substance cascading down the back of his throat.

“Dean, Dean?! Are you okay?” Castiel panicked, seeing the other doubled over his face above the sink while he continued to cough and splutter.

“I’m good.” Dean croaked eventually, lifting his head and pushing the toothbrush back into the cup, taking the towel from behind Castiel to wipe away the toothpaste from the boy’s mouth. “You got a little toothpaste going on there.” He laughed, leaning in once he pushed the towel away, capturing the boys lips with his own while he twisted his hands into Castiel’s back for support.

“You ready to go to bed?” he asked when they pulled away, putting his hand into Castiel's while they slowly made their way back into his room, promptly falling back onto the bed once the door was closed.

“Of course, would you like for me to get a spare blanket and pillows?” Castiel offered as he took his pyjamas from his bag upon Dean’s bed.

“What the hell are you on about?” Dean asked, stroking his thumb across Castiel’s palm.

“For the floor, I assume it gets cold and uncomfortable at night if one does not have anything covering them, and I did not bring my own sheets I am afraid.” He clarified.

“You’re not sleepin’ on the floor, dumbass, my bed is big enough for two, look at it, and this isn’t the first time you have fallen asleep on it either, so it’s all good, okay?”

“If that is what you wish, I simply did not wish to impose.”

“Dude, you are not imposing, I want to share my bed with you okay. You are my boyfriend, my very comfortable boyfriend.” Dean said with a laugh.

“What about your leg though?”

“Well, as long as you don’t lie on my leg or kick it in your sleep, then I think we’re gonna be fine.” Dean joked, dragging the other boy forward so that he was straddling his waist, smiling as Castiel leant down, kissing him gently before moving his lips to whisper in Dean’s ear. “I really need to pee.”

Dean threw his head back onto the mattress, laughing heavily “Way to kill the mood Cas.” He breathed. Kissing the boys cheek before reluctantly letting go of his hand as the other walked away from the bed, winking back over his shoulder with a small smirk.

When Castiel returned to the room, he closed the door behind him, looking back over to the bed to see Dean lying above the covers, in simply a pair of boxers, flicking through the television channels.

“You are going to get cold if you stay like that.” Castiel chided, sliding in under the blanket while helping pull it out from under Dean so that he could put it over the other boy.

“Thank you, Cas.” He said gratefully, twisting himself into the boy’s side.

“You are welcome, Dean. Do you wish to sleep or are you going to watch something else?” he asked, directing his attention to the television playing in front of them.

“I dunno, its comin’ up to eleven, you still awake or are you up for something else?”

“I do not mind, whatever it is you wish to do, I am fully amendable to.”

“Dude, you gotta start making some decisions around here.” Dean said softly, running his hands across Castiel’s arm, pressing a soft kiss to his neck.

“Very well, we can watch something until you fall asleep, and I assume by the yawns escaping you at regular intervals that will follow through sooner rather than later.” Castiel declared, taking the remote from Dean’s hands and flicking through the channels until he came across an old episode of friends.

“Oh I love it when you take charge like that.” Dean laughed, moving in as close as possible, sighing into the warmth Castiel offered.

“Of course you do.” Castiel said quietly, stroking his hand through Dean’s hair as they began to settle into a quiet motion, looking between the television and the other when they thought they were not looking, soft smiles when they were caught.

It was only minutes into the second episode when Castiel tilted his head, noticing the sleeping boy, his hands flat over Castiel’s chest, fingers moving lightly over the fabric of Castiel’s top, his eyelids fluttering as he dreamt. Castiel sighed contently at the sight, slowly moving to reach over into his bag where his fingers clasped around the hardback book, bringing it out and placing it onto the bed. When he was lay back down, he felt Dean turning and twisting lightly, only to see him moving further onto Castiel, resting his head into the crook of Castiel’s neck, his nose wriggling around the hairs that swept across his face.

Slowly reaching back down, he took the book from where it lay and brought it into his sight, one arm twisted around the blonde haired boy while the other held open the pages of the book while he read through the pages.

“Why are you still awake?” Came a low, sleep ridden voice from below him. He looked down to see squinted green eyes looking up at him, a soft smile pulling at his lips.

“I could not sleep.” Castiel replied, running his hand gently though Dean’s hair, leaning down to press a soft kiss to his temple. “Go back to sleep. I’m fine with reading until I fall asleep. Do you mind if I put some music on, quietly, it helps me sleep?” Castiel mumbled against Dean’s forehead, his hand still carding through the others hair.

“If that’s what you want.” Dean said softly, “Can you read aloud though?” he asked timidly, his eyes looking anywhere but Castiel’s.

“Y-you want me to read to you?” Castiel stumbled, his hand faltering in Dean’s hair.

“Yeah, I mean you don’t have to if you don’t wanna.”

“If you wish for me to do so, though I am not doing the voices or any of the noises for you.” Castiel proposed. Smiling as Dean dug himself back into his side, holding onto Castiel’s hand as he began to read.

“The sea was as flat as gelatine. There was no whisper of wind to ripple the surface. The sun sucked shimmering waves of heat from the water. Now and then, a passing tern would plunge for food, and rise again, and the wavelets from its dive became circles that grew without cease.

“The boat sat still in the water, drifting imperceptibly in the tide. Two fishing rods, in rod-holders at the stern, trailed wire line into the oily slick that spread westward behind the boat. Hooper sat at the stern, a twenty-gallon garbage pail at his side. Every few seconds, he dipped a ladle into the pail and spilled it overboard into the slick.” Castiel read, his hands shaking lightly as he continued on.

After reading two chapters, Dean was breathing calmly at his side and his eyes were beginning to droop slightly. Castiel pushed the bookmark carefully between the pages before placing it onto the table beside him. Taking his phone to quietly play the music as he lay back in the bed, slowly drifting off to sleep as he held Dean close to his chest.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know that the case I wrote about was in fact R v Smith, though I was in a hurry to try and get that bit finished - back to college now which sucks. Also, my apologies that this is based on English law, I did not know much about American law, and so to get it out reasonably on time, this was the best alternative.  
> And also my apologies that this chapter is a day late in comparison to the others. There was so much work for college that I had left to the last day.


	19. And when your looks are gone and you're all alone...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I thought maybe we would go with a bit of fluff, you know, amazingly loving Dean and what not, awesome brothers.  
> My apologies if this is not that great at the moment, and kind of stops half way through I guess. I have been swamped with work and just wanted to get this up again on the Sunday as has kind of become the tradition at the moment. though also the apologies on this being shorter than the previous few chapters, I don't know, it just seems to not be coming along that well at the moment.  
> Anyway, I hope you all enjoy it!  
> And as always, your kudos' and comments mean the world!

It was after a few peaceful hours sleeping, being enveloped in another’s warm skin that he was jolted awake by the frantic twisting behind him. Slowly opening his eyes, he turned his head to see the boy behind him, though what he was met with caused great discomfort at the sight, the pain that was evident across his face, the twisting and reaching of his body and the soft whining sounds escaping his lips.

“Cas?” Dean asked quietly, his body turning so that he could fully see the boy.

Looking closer, swat had begun to gently fall from his forehead, deep lines throughout as his eyes continued to flicker underneath the eyelids. “No.” came the soft, pained whisper from his lips, barely audible.

“Cas, come on dude, you gotta wake up.” Dean said again, moving himself so that he was lay behind the other boy. “Please.” He pleaded quietly.

“No, no, stop this, please!” Castiel cried out, his eyes still tightly shut, his hands balling into fists at his side while Dean began to stroke down his arms.

“Shh, I got you.” Dean cooed.

“No, no, don’t do it!” he cried out again, his legs flying out from under the covers, kicking them away in one swift motion.

Dean stared down at him, thinking of how it really was that he could calm the boy, how he had done so. Suddenly, all he could think of was one song which he began to sing aloud; “My love lives at the end of the rainbow, one day I’m gonna fly there on a firefly. High above the wild endless water, with a love song in my heart.”

“No, m…” he trailed off, Dean’s hand continuing to stroke across his body, his voice cutting through the wind.

“Someday, somehow I’m gonna get there, I’ve been patient for so long. All my daydream seems so much nearer now, and I beg you hear my song.” He sighed gently.

“Mum, please stop!” Castiel croaked, his arms flying in front of his face, digging himself around the bed.

“Firefly and your glowing wings are right, ‘till I sit beside this dream of mine. Firefly high on the rising tide, only wanna touch the things I’ve seen.

“Stepping in lighting from star to star, cross the wilderness of youth. Wondering how much in love with me you are. ‘Cause I’m so much in love with you.”

“Firefly can you take me, I ain’t had no loving lately. Firefly bring me love, to my new horizon. The one that I still got my eyes on, my, my, firefly.” He continued, his hands moving up through Castiel’ body to rest in his hair, gently combing through it as he sung softly, slowly finishing the song while Castiel continued to fight his own demons. “In my dreams you come to me, the answer to my prayer. As I begin to feel you warm my heart, I awake and you are not there. Now and then I see your eyes, as the stars begin to shine. No rain to cool my passion, not now you’re mine.”

It was only when he had finished the final verse that he felt the body atop of him jolt, suddenly wide, scarred blue eyes staring back up at him.

“Hey.” Dean said softly. His hand continuing to move through the boy’s hair gently.

Castiel did not reply, instead, he buried his face in the other boy’s chest, not moving even as he felt hot tears streaming down his face and running across the others chest.

“Hey, hey, it’s okay Cas, I got you. I always got you.” Dean whispered, leaning down to kiss the others forehead. “You wanna talk about it?” he asked gently, moving back as he felt Castiel shake his head lightly. “Okay, we don’t have to talk about it, just go back to sleep, I’m stayin’ right here with you.”

“Tell me a story?” Castiel asked weakly, his voice hoarse while his eyes continued to stream.

“What do you want it about?” Dean offered.

“Anything, just say something.” He mumbled quietly in response, threading his arms around Dean’s back and holding onto him tightly. Sighing contently as she felt Dean’s arms equally as tight around his back, thumbs stroking over the exposed skin above his waistband.

“Okay, well there was this one hunting trip that me and dad went on a while ago, we thought that we were the only ones there, but it turns out that other hunters had made it first. Well, we were wanderin’ around. You know, getting out bearings of the area so that we had a better chance at taking it down. Well what we didn’t realise after the others was that they had set up their own traps. Their traps that were all over the damn place. Dad and I were walking back through, passing the same tree we had on our way in. one minute we are talking, the next I’m up in a tree. Someone had set out a rope trap that would pull you up, so I am there, hanging from a tree while my dad continues to talk. Not noticing that I’m not replyin’ or that he’s walkin’ alone until he turns around and see’s that I’m not there. ‘God damn it kid. Where have you gone now?’ he was shoutin’, lookin’ around tryin’ to find me. I was up there for a while before he found me, and just kind of stood there, laughin’ a bit at the fact that I was stuck in a tree. ‘What did I tell ya, son. You gotta look at your surroundings.’ He was sayin’ as he took his knife out to cut the rope, lettin’ me fall to the ground.

“He was tellin’ me on the way back how the same thing had happened when he was out with Bobby, he got stuck in the tree and Bobby just stood there laughin’ at him until dad fell down, cutting himself free, Bobby had to help him back to the motel after that. Mum was worried when he came home that he was badly hurt, seeing the ankle and the bruises on his face from face palming the floor.” Dean laughed fondly, his hands continuing to run through Castiel’s hair.

When he looked down, he was met with the soft, sleeping Castiel, his face gentle and soft, like a child, peaceful in his sleep in comparison. Smiling down at the boy, he kissed him softly, tightening his arms around him while he fell into a deep sleep, thin black hairs continuing to tickle his face.

“I got you.” Dean mumbled quietly through his sleep, not noticing the soft smile that crossed across Castiel’s lips or the content sigh releasing over his chest.

* * *

Castiel was the first to wake that morning, not wanting to get up and so snuggling himself deeper back into Dean’s side, kissing his neck softly as his arms wrapped around the other.

When he woke for the second time, Dean still had not moved from his position below Castiel. Carefully, Castiel began to detangle himself from the mass of limbs that had wrapped themselves around him, slowly and regretfully taking Dean’s arm from around his waist, smiling down as he heard the boy moan sleepily for the loss, twisting into one of the pillows.

Silently, Castiel pulled a jumper over his shoulders before making his way through the house and into the kitchen. Once there, he worked diligently, frying pancakes and creating toppings before pacing everything separately and carrying the plates and bowls in his hands and arms, up the stairs and back into Dean’s room.

He began placing the plates upon the empty half of the bed before moving beside Dean and gently climbing atop of him, his legs straddling the others waist. He gently moved forward, placing his lips against Dean’s chest, slowly moving up to suck gently on his collar bone, smirking at the quiet moan he was able to draw out of him. He then began moving his lips higher again, reaching for the others chin, gently kissing it, moving higher to kiss behind his earlobe, higher and higher until he finally reached the boys lips where he began to slowly kiss the seams.

After a few minutes, green eyes finally met blue. Dean’s hands slowly raised, one to rest on Castiel’s hip while the other tangled itself in his hair, closing his eyes as Castiel deepened the kiss. Gently pushing his tongue into Dean’s waiting mouth, beaming as he heard the soft groan vibrating through Dean and into himself.

When Castiel reluctantly pulled back, he opened his eyes to see Dean staring back, a gentle smile on his face “Best way to wake up.” He whispered, leaning himself up to press a final kiss against Castiel’s lips.

“You think that was good, just wait.” Castiel spoke against his lips before pulling back to sit upon the others lap instead, offering space so that he was able to see the plates and assortments stacked behind him.

“Shit, Cas. You did all of this?” he asked, his eyes bulging at the sight in front of him, the bright colours of the blueberries mixing with the strawberries and the chocolate sauce contrasting to the pure, smooth whipped cream.

“No, it was the fairies.” Castiel mocked, leaning back to grab a plate and a pancake, pushing it over to Dean. “What do you want on it, we have got… um, strawberries, blueberries, marshmallows, chocolate sauce, chocolate sprinkles, cream, lemon, brownies, the brownies are damn good, I even warmed them, so they taste so much better.” Castiel listed happily, beaming brightly over at Dean while the other simply stared back with deep adoration in his eyes.

“You know what Cas, you can come over any time if you make me breakfast like this again.” Dean said with a laugh, moving his hands behind Castiel’s back where he began to trace above the waist band of his pyjamas, smiling as he felt Castiel shiver lightly under his touch.

“Yes, well if you want that, you are going to have to actually eat.” He commented, swiftly moving from Dean’s lap to sit beside the boy, pulling his own plate into his lap as he began to put assortments of treats onto his own pancake.

“Well, move your ass and I’ll get some.”

They ate their pancakes with joyful laughter filling the room, spreading sauce over one another as they continued to laugh. It was when Castiel threw the first marshmallow that the war began; handfuls were being thrown at the other while they tried to catch some in their mouth. The majority of which landed across the floor and over the bedding.

“You do realise-“ Castiel breathed between laughter, the plates having been long finished as Castiel once again straddled Dean’s waist. “-that your bedding is covered in fruit, we should probably get this washed.”

“Yeah, that should probably be done. Or,” he said, with a wink, his hands traveling up Castiel’s back, gently pulling the other down so that they were lay flush against one another. “We could do this.” It took only a moment for Castiel to understand what the other meant, the moment their lips met, he understood perfectly.

Smiling into the kiss, Castiel brought his hands up so that one was cradling Dean’s cheek, the other resting on his shoulder. He could not believe that it had only been a few days since they had re-evaluated the boundaries of their friendship, and already he was more comfortable around him than he was with most people. Disclosing his siblings or Charlie, but after them it just seemed so easy to talk to Dean, that they could stay quiet, there were no need for words, one look could convey every thought or query they shared.

It was then that his mind began to run back, how it had been before they had moved. Where would he be at now, would he have ever found someone, would he have been able to take them home to meet his siblings. What would his mother think about it, how would she respond.

The sound of Dean’s mumbled voice was what brought him out of his thoughts. “Don’t think too hard, your gonna hurt yourself”

“Quite on the contrary, Dean. Thinking is what helps one to keep safe, without thought; we would take any actions without consideration of the consequences.” Castiel responded, his head tilting to the side lightly in a way that Dean found to just be incredibly adorable and made him want to pull the other tightly into his arms, see  what other kind of faces he could pull from the boy.

“Shut it, smartass.” He scoffed, laughing when Castiel stuck his tongue out in the mannerism of a child.

“You love it.” Castiel commented, smile crossing across his lips as he picked a blueberry from where it lay beside Dean’s head, throwing it into the others mouth. “Now come on, move your ass.”  Castiel said as he jumped up from Dean, standing beside the bed and holding his hand out to help Dean stand up.

“Dude come on, it’s too early for this. Can’t we just sleep a little longer?” Dean grumbled, though there was a smile behind it as he took Castiel’s offered hand, lacing their fingers together as he stood in front of him, looking straight back at one another.

“Don’t be such a butt, Dean.” Castiel chastised, dragging the blanket off of the bed after having removed all pieces of fruit, putting them into one of the empty bowls. After he had removed the bedding and the sheets, each were scrunched into a ball that was thrown down the stairs as he helped Dean walk down by his side. Once at the bottom of the steps, Castiel picked up the bedding again, putting it into the washing machine while Dean sprawled out across the sofa.

“Hey Cas, what do you wanna do?” dean shouted through the house, turning his head to the door with a slightly sheepish expression as he saw Castiel standing there with a smirk on his lips.

“I do not mind, is there anything you had in mind?” Castiel replied as he dropped to the sofa, placing his head in Dean’s lap while he swung his legs onto the sofa, looking up into the soft emeralds of Dean’s eyes.

“Well, what time is it?” he asked looking across the room and towards the small clock that read 09:54. “Sammy’s gonna be home in a couple of hours, so mom said you have to stay with me.” He laughed with a small wink, running his thumb across Castiel’s cheekbone.

“Of course I will stay. But you need to choose something, or are you just planning to sit there and stroke me all morning?” Castiel

“Oh Cas, I didn’t know you had such a dirty mouth.”

“I, no, no, I, um, that, that was not. It was not what I meant.” Castiel stammered, his face turning scarlet as he turned his head so that it was hidden from the other boy in his lap.

“Hey, I’m sorry.” Dean chuckled, turning Castiel lightly so that they were looking at one another. “But your blush is adorable, the way your cheeks light up. That I’m not sorry for.” He concluded, his thumb resuming to stroke over Castiel’s cheekbone.

“You want something to eat?” Castiel asked suddenly, startling Dean from his movements.

“Dude, you at all of those pancakes like an hour ago.”

“That may be true, but food is good, you cannot deny that Dean Winchester.”

“Fine.” Dean hummed, dragging Castiel back to him. “What did you have in mind?”

“That’s a surprise, but I can tell you that it will be ready for lunch, if that is what you want.” Castiel murmured the last part, his eyes drifting down to look at his lap.

“I would love that Cas.” Dean confirmed, his eyes softening at the bright grin that covered the others face.

“Okay.” Castiel beamed. “Do you think your mother would mind my using some of your food to cook with?”

“Well, that’s what it’s for.” Dean mused. “Go ahead, knock yourself out. But if you use the last of anything, just make sure to write it down on the shopping list on the fridge.”

“Of course. Is there anything you are allergic to, or do not like?” Castiel questioned as Dean reluctantly released him so that he could rise, looking back at Dean with a smile.

“Nah, I’m good I think.” Dean clarified, trying to think back to whether there was in fact anything he was allergic to, though nothing came to mind and he was pretty open in what he ate. “But no rabbit food. I get enough of that with Sammy.” He chuckled.

“Okay, so anything as long as it is not healthy.” Castiel proclaimed as he made his way out of the living room, leaving Dean to his own devices, which for him meant an old rerun of Doctor Sexy.

Once in the kitchen, Castiel closed the door behind him before taking his phone and playing some music aloud while he began to look through the fridge, forming a plan when he saw a packet of bacon lying on the shelf.

Half an hour later, Castiel walked into the living room carrying two bowls and a plate. He sat himself down next to Dean, putting the plate on the small table in front of them while he passed a bowl over to Dean, keeping one in his own lap and handing a spoon to him also.

“What’s this?” Dean asked looking between the bowl and the plate.

“It is lunch, you said you didn’t want any rabbit food, and I do not believe that rabbits would eat as such.” He smiled as he dug the spoon into the bowl of mashed potato in front of him. “Crap, wait a minute. Don’t eat!” Castiel objected as he ran from the sofa and back into the kitchen, returning a moment later with two mugs, setting one in front of Dean and one in front of himself. “There we go. Bon appetite.” Castiel smiled as he tucked into his own lunch, pouring the cup across his potato so that it was completely covered in thick gravy.

“Dude, mashed potato, gravy and bacon for lunch. Sammy would lose his shit if he saw this.” Dean laughed as he took a crispy piece of bacon from the plate, popping it into his mouth. “Dude, this is the best bacon!”

“Thank you. My brothers taught me. Gabriel loves bacon, so we found the perfect way to do it.” He commented as he took a handful of bacon, crumbling it across the top of the gravy so that the bowl was covered in a thin layer of bacon.

“Why’d you cook this?” Dean asked once he had finished his mouthful.

“You had bacon and I wanted mashed potato, so I thought this would be a good lunch. Gabriel used to make it all the time for me when we were little, when mom was out or when it was just us in the house.” Castiel said fondly as he pushed another spoonful of mashed potato into his mouth.

“Dude, you have some weird ass habits.” Dean chuckled as he followed Castiel’s movements, placing a thin blanket of bacon over the gravy before taking a spoonful, mashed potato, bacon and gravy, pushing the whole thing into his mouth. “But damn, this does taste good!” Dean moaned lightly around the flavours swirling within his mouth.

“I knew you’d love it.” Castiel spoke, finishing the mashed potato before licking the bowl.

“For such a formal little dude, you do a lot of shit I wouldn’t expect.” Dean chuckled as he brought his finger up to Castiel’s face, wiping away the smudge of potato that had accumulated before licking it off, and if that was something that Castiel might think about in the future, that was his business, he simply smiled sheepishly as the thoughts continued to run through his mind.

“Yes, well, I do not know.” Castiel mumbled, watching as Dean put his own bowl back onto the table, gaining confidence in himself with the way Dean was looking at him, the soft adoration, the way Dean’s eyes would always trace down to his lips brought a shiver through his body. Without thinking twice, he lifted his body onto his knees, moving so that he was straddling Dean’s waist once again, Dean sitting with his back to the sofa while Castiel smirked as he felt the now familiar movement of Dean’s hands making their way to rest on his hips.

“Expect this, Jackass.” He mumbled as he surged forward, catching Dean’s lips in a rough kiss. Smiling as he heard the surprised squeak that escaped the others lips, Castiel continued. He moved his hands from where they lay motionless, dragging them slowly up Dean’s body, dragging over the boy’s nipples while Castiel smirked once more as the moan that escaped his lips, deciding he liked the way he could make Dean act with only his hands and his mouth. Eventually his hands rested within the strands of Dean’s hair, tugging gently as he deepened the kiss, gently probing his tongue into Dean’s mouth.

Eventually, the pair separated to breathe; Dean was looking at Castiel with wide eyes, his mouth slightly agape.

When Castiel saw Dean’s expression, the smile fell from his face and he looked down, blushing slightly, he mumbled “Sorry.”, fiddling with his thumbs while he leant back, still straddling Dean’s lap.

“Cas,” Dean began as he lifted the others chin with his hand so that he was looking at him. “Don’t ever be sorry for that.” he concluded, speaking softly with a reassuring smile as he leant forward, pecking Castiel on the cheek.

“”m’kay. Castiel mumbled as he leant forward, resting against Dean’s chest with a soft, content sigh when Dean’s arms wrapped around his back, holding him in close. “Thank you.” He whispered against Dean’s neck.

Dean smiled, “You’re welcome, Cas.” He said, pressing his face into the scruffy, dark hair to plant another soft kiss.

Moments later, they both jumped up at hearing a door slam closed. “Hey Dean, I’m home!” Sam shouted through the house.

“Were in the living room.” Dean shouted back as Castiel removed himself from his lap, opting to sit beside Dean instead, their hands intertwining. “How was it?” he asked when Sam threw himself, unceremoniously, down onto the sofa.

“It was great!” he commented excitedly “We stayed up all night watching films and eating sweets and then in the morning, Jess’s mom made us pancakes. She’s really nice you know, she even offered to let me go around next weekend. Do you think mom and dad will let me?” Sam rambled, his eyes wide with excitement as he retold the events.

“I’m sure they will, kid.” Dean laughed, leaning over to ruffle his brother’s head.

“Dean….” He groaned, moving his head out of his brothers reach. “Quit it.”

“Oh come on Sammy, your my baby brother, you have to let me do this, big brother laws.” He joked as he leant back against the sofa, smirking over.

“Do not worry Sam, it does not stop as you grow older. Gabriel does it to me still, as do Michael and Lucifer for that fact, though thankfully just not as much.” Castiel commented, earning a soft laugh from Dean.

“See, I get to do it forever!” Dean cackled.

“Jerk.” Sam muttered, though with no real malice under his tone.

“Bitch.” Dean retaliated before Sam began standing. “Where you goin’?” he asked, his eyes following the younger boy’s movements.

“I’m gonna take a shower.” He said as he made his way out of the room.

“Oh I bet you do!” Dean laughed, earning a slightly confused look from Castiel, his head tilting to the side which just caused Dean to smile brightly. “Don’t worry Cas.” He said softly, leaning forward and pressing a small kiss to the corner of Castiel’s mouth, his lips moving gently until they were completely covering the others.

“Hey, Cas?” he mumbled against the others lips, moving slightly so that their foreheads were leaning against one another, eyes still lightly closed.

“Mhm?”

“What were you dreamin’ about last night?” Dean asked carefully, opening his eyes to gauge the others expression, being met with Castiel’s deeply closed eyes, an almost pained expression covering his face.

“N-nothing” he stammered quickly, turning his head away from Dean, looking into his lap.

“I’m sorry.” Dean said quickly, his hands running over Castiel's, taking each in his own before continuing, “You don’t have to tell me, I just don’t like seeing you like that. The pained looks, the helpless cry.” He confessed, shaking his head softly at the realisation there was nothing he could do to help Castiel.

“I apologise Dean, I did not mean to cause you any distress, I just, I don’t think I am ready to talk about this.” He whimpered burying his face in Dean’s neck as the other raised his hands, cradling Castiel’s face as he rubbed soothing circles in his back, feeling hot tears begin to burn down his neck as he heard Castiel choke lightly, never once moving his head.

“No, Cas, don’t apologise to me okay, I shouldn’t have asked. Just know I am here if you ever want me, I am always gonna be here.” He cooed into Castiel’s hear, kissing him gently as he finished his sentence.

“T-thank you, D-Dean.” He whispered tightening his hands around Dean’s neck, feeling the weight shift as Dean lay against the backrest, dragging Castiel closer to him so that he could hold him tightly, whispering comforting words into his neck.

When they finally pulled apart, Castiel was still being tightly held by Dean, his breathing having had calmed and the tears no longer flowing. He leant up, kissing Dean gently on the cheek. “Thank you.” He whispered sheepishly.

Rather than asking what it was Castiel was thanking him for or why he felt the need to thank him, Dean smiled back at him, a beaming, reassuring smile which Castiel reciprocated.

The two continued to stare at one another in a comfortable silence, nothing breaking their peace as Dean’s hand continued to stroke over the palm of Castiel's.

It was the heavy vibration through Castiel’s left thigh that shocked them both into action, Castiel almost jumping out of his seat while Dean held tighter onto his hand – a simple reflex he had gained over the years. At an unexpected movement, you grasp what you care about. You protect them at all costs.

“Shit.” Castiel mumbled, digging into his pocket and pulling his phone out.

“You scared the crap out of me, dude.” Dean informed him, a soft smile gracing his features.

“My apologies.” He said as he held the phone in his palm, reading through the message that had just arrived. With a sorrowful look, he turned his attention back to Dean. “It appears m brothers are on their way to pick me up. Something about needing to go to the store. _Again._ ” He said. “All of them.”

“Right, well we better get your ass ready to go then.” Dean huffed. “You do realise you haven’t been here not nearly long enough.” He informed Castiel, looking down to their connected hands.

“No, but you get to see me on Monday to Friday, and I might even let you see me next weekend if we really must.” Castiel mocked, sticking his tongue out at Dean.

“You're an ass. You want me too.” Dean laughed, kissing the tip of Castiel’s nose.

“Yes, I guess that is a sound judgement. But I really must go and get my bag now, my brothers will be here soon, and unless you want to stand at the door talking with them while I fetch my things…” he threatened, a laugh forming as Dean made an overly exaggerated horrified expression.

“Alright then, move your ass, and let’s get your stuff.”  Dean finally agreed, allowing Castiel to help him up from the sofa.

“It is mostly ready, I just need to grab my bag I think and that is it.” Castiel offered as they began to slowly climb the stairs leading to Dean’s room.

“Right-o. You go ahead, I’m just gonna check on Sammy.” Dean said as they separated, Castiel opening the door to Dean'’ room while Dean knocked on Sam’s door. “Hey kid, you in there?” he asked, opening the door and peaking around the corner.

“What’s up, Dean?” he asked, turning in his chair, away from the book he was reading and towards his brother.

“Cas is goin’ now.” He offered, walking into the room and sitting down on Sam’s overly neat bed. “You have a good time with Jess then?” he asked with a smile.

“You already asked that.” Sam informed him. “You have a good time with Cas?”

“Well, I’m sorry for carin’ about you.” He said, feigning hurt as he turned away from Sam. “But we had a great time, watched a few films. Cas was asleep most of the time though, but he is warm, so you know, all good there.”

“Yeah? You know Dean; I haven’t seen you this happy with someone; and not nearly as… PG.” Sam decided, moving carefully around his words as to not offend anyone. Though it was true to say the least, of all the girls he had seen Dean with, none of them acted like this, and hardly any he had brought home.

“Shut up, bitch. I told you, it’s not like that with Cas, okay.” He groaned, pushing his little brother’s shoulder. “’Kay, well I’m gonna go find Cas, he’s probably ready to go. Come down, we’ve got food, and we’ve got films, we can have a night in, you and me tonight.” Dean bargained, standing from his position to see the beam spreading across Sam’s face.

“Alright, just let me finish with this bit and I’ll be down, tell Cas I say bye.” Sam motioned at his books.

“Fine, but don’t be too long or I’m eatin’ all the brownie.” Dean challenged, laughing when he saw the look on Sam’s face.

Walking out of the door, he was instantly met by Castiel doing the same, closing Dean’s bedroom door behind him, beaming when he saw Dean standing before him. “Hey.” He interjected, breaking the short silence.

“Hello.” Castiel responded, both stepping closer to one another.

“You ready to go?”

“Yes, we are just waiting for my brothers now.” Castiel commented, walking up to Dean while they began their trek back down the stairs.

“You want something else to eat before you go?” he offered as they made their way past the kitchen and towards the front door.

“No thank you, I am full still from our breakfast and lunch. That is more than I have eaten in a while. Not usually one for breakfast.”

“You, Castiel Novak, Mr. responsible do not eat breakfast.” He mocked lightly.

“My apologies.”

“Hey Cassie, you ready to go, or do you need a little more ‘alone time’ with your _boyfriend_?” came the loud, chipper voice from the door.

“Gabriel!” Castiel exclaimed. “This is not your house; you cannot just open another’s door and walk through.”

“Oh come on Cassie, we told you we were on our way. We gave you time to finish anything conspicuous you were doing first.” Gabriel chirped.

“I apologise for my brother’s behaviour, Dean.” Castiel volunteered, turning back around to his boyfriend who looked shocked more than angry, the former being a preferable reaction to the latter.

“He won’t mind Cas, were practically family now right.” Gabriel joked, moving forward to stand beside his brother.

“Yeah, its fine I guess Cas. Let’s me know how I’m menna enter your house from now on.” He jibed.

“You ready to go Cas, or Mike and Luce are going to come over her too.” Gabriel pointed out, gesturing towards the open door showing the car waiting on the road, two beaming faces watching them all closely. “So get whatever you need to out of the way, and then off we go.”

Dean did not waste any time, pulling Castiel into his arms, a soft smile showing before they leant forward, sharing a soft, sweet and simple kiss, only pulling back when they heard Gabriel making gagging noises. Dean glaring at the other boy while Castiel began to blush furiously.

“You offered, man.” Dean laughed as he reluctantly released Castiel, following them to the door, placing a soft kiss to his neck as Gabriel walked ahead. “I’ll see you on Monday, and I’ll ring you tonight.” He promised, pressing one last kiss to Castiel’s lips when the boy turned to face him.

“I’ll be waiting.” Castiel whispered in response, offering a small wave as he followed his brother to the car.

“Oh, Cas!” Dean shouted when Castiel was half way to the car, causing the other boy to spin on his heels, concern evident on his features. “Tell your brother his brownies were awesome!” he finished, a bright smile and a wink as Castiel turned back around, walking the small distance to the car, saying something to Lucifer who then turned around in the seat to give Dean a small wave, a proud smile on his face.

“You're right, these do taste good.” Sam mumbled around a mouthful of brownie, walking up to stand behind his brother as the door was closed.

“Told you.” Dean replied, snatching the remainder of the brownie from Sam’s hand, throwing it into his mouth with a smirk. “Mm, good!” he boasted, licking his lips before Sam punched him in the shoulder, shouting “Jerk.” As he made his way back into the kitchen, bringing out the remainder of the brownies alongside other assortments of cold food, including a tub of ice cream that they scoffed, sitting on the sofa watching films.

* * *

When Castiel jumped into the car, all eyes were on him. “How was it?” Michael asked softly.

“It was great, we ate and we watched films. Oh, and Luce, he really liked your brownies.” Castiel replied, a grin still covering his face as he watched his brother beam, turning in his seat to offer Dean a small wave.

“We are glad you had a good time, Cas.” Michael concluded as they began to pull away from the house, making the journey to the supermarket while Lucifer and Gabriel began bickering while Castiel simply sat, daydreaming out of the window.

“Hey, earth to Cas. We’re here.” Gabriel said as the brothers began piling out of the vehicle.

“Is Charlie coming over tonight?” Lucifer asked once they were all in the store, Michael pushing the trolley with Gabriel standing beside him, the younger brother animatedly talking about some new film he had seen with Kali recently while Michael listened, laughing in all the correct places. Lucifer and Castiel on the other hand opting to walk behind them, laughing whenever they saw Gabriel try to sneak something into the trolley without Michael’s knowledge.

“No.” Castiel replied, “I’m meeting her tomorrow morning and we are going to go into town for the day, probably come back home afterwards for a bit. Is that okay?” he added as an afterthought, looking up to his brother when he realised he had not asked them if it was okay for Charlie to return to their house.

“Cas, what did we say the other day. Charlie is an honorary Novak, she is welcome anytime. And as for you, you can go out whenever you want, just make sure you let us know and if you want a lift. We’re just glad that you have good friends here and you go out rather than being stuck up in your room all day.” Lucifer said softly, his arm moving to rest around his brothers neck as he dragged him along, both laughing loudly.

“I wasn’t always up in my room.” Castiel objected.

“Oh, you really were. Do you not remember that little hiding place you had and your bothers and I thought we had lost you. Mike and I spent two hours searching for you. You only emerged when you smelt bacon. We were about ready to send out a damn search party.” Lucifer mused as he pulled two packets of bacon from the fridge, throwing them into the trolley.

“He’s right Cas.” Michael interjected, looking round briefly at him as they stopped at the head of an aisle. “You are much better here. This move was best for all of us. Gabe is doing better in school, Lucifer and I love or jobs and look at you. Got yourself a best friend and a boyfriend, not bad going for a little dork.” He concluded with a soft chuckle, ruffling Castiel’s hair.

“Yeah Cas, you and Dean-o” Gabriel chided in, a smirk replacing the smile. “You done the nasty yet?” he asked with a wink.

“Gabriel!” Castiel chastised, his cheeks gaining colour.

“Come on Cas, we’re your brothers, you have to tell us.” He reasoned.

“Fine! Yes, we did it three times. Once in his bed, once on the kitchen floor and then again on the sofa before his brother got home. But you know, I never would have thought of Dean to be the bottom. But hey, I guess he’s full of surprises, so many surprises.” Castiel said before walking down an aisle while his brothers had all come to a halt, just staring after the dorky little ball of Cas who had begun to happily walk away, the bright smile forming on his face that none others could see.


	20. How many nights you sit beside the phone...

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> An enjoyable weekend - some Destiel (though there will be so much more in the next chapter)!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dudes, I am so freaking sorry about this! I know I wanted to update it a while back and that this has taken so long coming, but after writing it just did not make sense, and then I had even written most of the next chapter until I realised the dates were wrong, so I am not sure how long this is going to take, but I am going to work my damned hardest to get it up as soon as I can; definitely within the space of the month.  
> I am again sorry for how long this has taken, and for all those that are continuing to read - I love you all and I hope you enjoy this!  
> Thank you ( :

After an eventful shopping trip, the four brothers had finally emptied the last shopping bag from the boot of the car. Michael and Lucifer had begun to unpack the bags into the cupboards while Gabriel stood watching, a smirk on his lips and a packet of Twizzlers in his hands. Castiel on the other hand was stood to the side, his phone in his hand while he smiled down brightly at it chewing lightly on the corner of his lower lip.

The pone in his hand was illuminated, the screen frozen on a text message as Castiel continued to read the message his smile brightening as he reached the end.

**_\- Hey Cas. Just wanted to let you know that I had a great time, and maybe we can do it again soon, minus Sammy again. You know we could watch some more films. Oh the new Avengers is released this week, do you maybe want to go watch that? Oh and Sammy loved the brownies the little shit has just eaten the rest and half of the ice cream. Next time, get Luce to make pie ( ; hope you’re having a good day, Angel._ **

_From Dean, received 13:27_

He read through the message twice, his smile just continuing to grow, tilting his head lightly at the mention of _‘Angel’_. That was something new, something that he had not been called by anyone before, let alone by Dean. Though he would not tell the other that he did not like it, something different that they had between the two of them. Others could call him _Cas_ , but only Dean would call him _Angel_.

Looking up from the _screen_ of his phone, he noticed Gabriel smirking at him before silently turning his attention back to the other two brothers, laughing loudly, Twizzler still in his mouth as Michael and Lucifer continued to argue over where the shopping should be placed – Michael trying to argue that the eggs belong in the fridge while Lucifer countered that they belong in the cupboard beside the bread.

Turning away from his family with a smile, Castiel looked back down to his phone which had darkened. Slowly, he tapped the numbers of his passcode, the phone unlocking and returning to the screen showing Dean’s message. Quickly, his fingers began to type out a reply;

**_\- Hello, Dean. I am glad you had a good time. I also enjoyed myself, thank you for letting me stay. Of course I would like to do that again, whenever you wish. That, that I want to watch!! It doesn’t come out for another week though, which sucks, but maybe we can get there on the day it is released? Be the first to watch it and then maybe you could come and stay here for the night if you wanted. I am glad Sam liked the brownies, as will Luci be. Well, if you were to stay here after we watch the film, then I am sure Lucifer would be happy to make pie, he makes a number of good pies, even creating new recipes, feeding us them to see what we think. (The bacon and apple pie was not one of his best efforts – bacon is good, but not with apple..!) I am, thank you, my brothers and I went shopping after they picked me up from your house. Michael and Lucifer are now arguing over where the eggs should be placed._ **

_\- To Dean, sent 13:41_

Castiel beamed as he finally pressed the _SEND_ button after having reread multiple times, awaiting Dean’s reply. Looking back up, he saw three smiling faces staring straight back at him, Gabriel leaning lightly against the window, an empty packet next to him 

“You finished with your phone there, kid? Or should we give the two of you a little privacy.” Lucifer said with a smile, making his way over to stand beside his younger brother.

“Yes. To the first part!” Castiel replied hesitantly, putting his phone back into his pocket. “Did you finally put the eggs away.” He retorted, a smirk forming across his lips.

“Oh, the kids got sass.” Lucifer mocked, throwing his arm around Castiel’s shoulder and dragging him towards his body.

“I’m hungry!” Gabriel complained loudly, jumping up to sit on the countertop as he began to pick grapes from the basket beside him, throwing three into his mouth before grinning at his brothers.

“Of course you are.” Michael chuckled, looking over to Gabriel as he spoke. “What do you want?”

“Mashed potato!” Gabriel shouted, bouncing down from the counter to thrust a bag of potatoes into his brother’s hands before running away with childish laughter falling off of his tongue while his feet took him towards the living room, the television sound resonating through the house.

“Do you want that as well?” Michael asked, turning to look at Castiel.

“Sure. Can we have gravy too, and pie?” he asked, his blue eyes looking up to smile at his brothers, his gaze landing on Lucifer. “Dean said that Sam finished eating your brownies and that you can make him more food, especially pie, he likes pie.” Castiel continued, speaking fondly of the green eyed boy.

“The kid can be my new tester then, considering Mikey is worried about getting a little podgy.” He mocked, turning to pinch his brother’s stomach while he was given a stone glare.

“Lucifer, stop that.” Michael said, standing with his back straight, aiming to appear authoritative though his resolve was quickly broken as his lips began to twitch and a laugh escaped. “N-no. Stop that- stop that now.” He tried again while Lucifer’s nimble fingers continued to work at his sides, tickling the larger man until he broke into a laughing, sobbing mess onto the floor.

“What was that? Don’t think I could quite hear you.” Lucifer chirped, continuing his movements as he looked over to Castiel with a childish smile.

“N-no, you-you’ve got to st-stop this.” He breathed between laughter as he tried to roll away from the other man who was not slowing in the slightest.

It was only when the others complexion was similar to that of a beetroot, tears falling from his eyes and his hands clutching at his sides that Lucifer finally relinquished his actions. Standing back to smirk down at his brother who was still struggling to catch his breath.

* * *

After they had finished eating, Castiel picked his phone out of the kitchen, having completely forgotten about it until that moment. As the screen shone to life, he beamed down at the four unread messages being displayed on the small screen.

**_\- No worries, I’m taking you when it is released, and I will definitely come and stay at your house. You still haven’t shown me your room. I bet you’ve got loads of nerdy crap everywhere. (Haha.) Oh, I am up for anything, especially pie! And they should be in the cupboard._ **

_From Dean, received 15:13_

**_\- Sammy thinks they should be in the fridge. I told him he was wrong._ **

_From Dean, received 15:14_

**_\- Where are you Angel? I miss you and Sammy won’t talk to me. The dork’s too busy watching a documentary to talk to his own brother ) :_ **

_From Dean, received 15:19_

**_\- Hey, I’m coming over in a bit, you better have food ready._ **

_From Charlie, received 15:20_

Quickly, he typed out a response to Charlie before turning his attention back to his _boyfriends_ contact information.

**_\- We went shopping, so yes there is plenty of food in the cupboards, though we have eaten now, but you are welcome to the food in the cupboards._ **

_To Charlie, sent 15:23_

**_\- I would very much like that. Not that much, just a little, and it is all in order thank you. But you are most welcome to come over whenever you wish. I will be sure to inform my brothers of your thought. I apologise for the delay in my message, Michael was on the floor crying whilst Lucifer tickled him, as the mature adults they are, and then we ate. But I am all yours now. Until Charlie arrives._ **

_To Dean, sent 15:26_

Once he had put the phone back into his pocket, the distinct sound of a doorbell brought him from his thoughts and into the real world.

“Sup Bitches!” he heard Charlie’s loud voice, followed by laughter, all growing louder until suddenly four smiling faces were standing in the doorway.

“Look what we found wandering around.” Michael chuckled as he walked in behind Charlie and Gabriel, standing beside his twin.

“Michael, how many times have I told you not to let strays into the house. They just eat all the food.” Castiel said with a smirk, laughing as his point was accentuated with Charlie taking food out of the fridge, beaming back with a mouth full.

“Too late.” She said as the last of the food was swallowed, leaving her with an empty mouth as she moved to stand beside Castiel. “You allowed me in, now I am yours _forever!_ ” she laughed loudly.

“Well without further ado Miss Bradbury, would you care to join us for a film, refreshments are readily set out.”

“Oh Mr. Novak, I would be delighted to.” She joked, taking Gabriel’s offered arm as he led her into their living room, the three remaining brothers following in tow.

The rest of the evening in the Novak household passed in a simple manner, Castiel and Charlie were both sprawled across one of the sofas, laughing throughout the film and eating whatever it was that they could find while the other brothers positioned themselves around the room in similar positions.

It was not until the third film had finished that Michael looked over to see both Castiel and Charlie passed out on the sofa, Castiel’s arms encircling Charlie in a protective manner with Gabriel practically drooling on the floor.

Slowly getting up, the man made his way over to his younger brother, gently nudging his shoulder to wake him, though the only thing he was met with was his younger brother turning back against the sofa, wiggling slightly until his breathing evened out into a soft slumber once more.

Silently, he and Lucifer made their way into the kitchen, emerging moments later with a large pan each and a wooden spoon. Lucifer opting to stand over Gabriel while Michael stood in front of Castiel and Charlie. On the mouthing of three, both men began to hit the pans, making enough noise to startle all three, laughing as Charlie fell onto the floor.

“What the hell.” Castiel grumbled, rubbing his hands over his eyes while Charlie slowly pushed herself back onto the chair, sending sharp glances to both brothers. Gabriel on the other hand was completely and undeniably oblivious to everything happening around him, only moved slightly in his sleep, curling his legs further in on himself.

“It’s midnight, Cas.” Michael replied. “You’ve got to go to sleep.”

“What do you think we were doing?” He said, sounding mildly annoyed.

“In your own bed.” He reiterated, looking back to Lucifer who stared down at the sleeping boy by his feet. “He’s not going to be waking any time soon, is he…?”

“I doubt it. You know how Gabe is.” Was Lucifer’s gentle reply. He lowered the pans onto the chair, leaning down to scoop the sleeping boy into his arms. “Hold the doors; we’ll get him to bed. Cas, you and Charlie need to go to bed too.”

“Wait! Why didn’t you do that for us? Why did you have to wake us up?” He growled, rising as Charlie followed in his movements.

“Because you're a big boy and now you're awake, so you get to walk yourself.” Michael clarified with a smirk, shooing the two on their way before he followed Lucifer through the house, closing doors and turning off lights as they went.

* * *

When Castiel and Charlie had made it into his room after brushing their teeth, they both fell onto the bed with exhausted sighs.

“Do you want some pyjamas?” Castiel whispered, his eyes already closed.

“Yes please.”

Reluctantly, Castiel moved off of the bed, opening his draw to take out a top and a pair of pyjama bottoms, throwing them over to Charlie who quickly changed while he stripped of the jeans and the jumper, leaving him in his boxers and top.

“I’m taking this side.” Castiel said with a yawn as he slipped into the bed, Charlie manoeuvring around until both were comfortable with a generous amount of space each.

They quickly fell to sleep, moving closer throughout the night until Charlie had her head resting on Castiel’s chest and Castiel with his body completely spread, imitating the stance of a starfish.

* * *

As the morning sun shone through the open curtains, slowly filling the room with light, Castiel blindly felt around himself, realising there to be another in his bed, his eyes quickly flashed open, only to be met with a string of auburn hair strewn across his ace.

Grumbling unintelligently, Castiel removed the piece of hair from his face before squinting to see the time on his alarm clock.

Seeing it to be only seven o'clock, and considering it to be a weekend; Castiel burrowed himself back below the blanket until he was enveloped by warmth once more, falling into a shorter, yet just as sound sleep.

* * *

It was not until gone ten that the smell of sizzling bacon and loud singing awoke the two sleeping teens. They both looked to one another with matching grins before sleepily making their way through the house and into the kitchen where they were met by a large plate full of crispy bacon. 

“Yeah. I'm definitely staying here more often.” Charlie announced with a yawn, snatching a piece of bacon from the plate before pushing it into her mouth; practically salivating at the taste of the still hot bacon.

They were rudely interrupted once into their seventh piece by three pairs of tapping feet. Looking up, their mouths still full, they both offered matching comical smiles at the three watching faces.

“Of course. Help yourself to the bacon. It is all there for you two. We will just go hungry. I hope you know that if you find our starved corpses on the floor that it’ll be all your fault. That bacon could have been our salvation.” Lucifer stated dramatically; a small smile breaking across his face as he heard the soft laughter from Castiel.

“There's plenty left.” Castiel retorted as he walked the plate over to his brother, the smile still ever present, bringing the same to the three brothers in front of him.

“Mm-hm. Just finish your breakfast and go do whatever it was you were going to do. You're going into town right?” Michael asked, eyeing his brother warily.

“Yes. There is a CD I want to buy and then we are going to watch a film.” Castiel stated happily, taking another piece of bacon from the plate that had transferred into the hands of Lucifer.

“Okay, well bring a film back too that we can watch tonight.” Lucifer commented, handing a pocket full of change to Castiel. “Oh, and don't forget the popcorn.”

* * *

An hour later, Castiel and Charlie were both stood within the town centre, marvelling at the sight of men and women walking around the streets, lightsabers and guns in hand with numerous different forms of uniforms on; re-enacting miniature battles with one another as a number ran straight past Castiel and Charlie, both of whom had stopped their movements to watch the scene unfold in front of them. Their eyes completely transfixed upon the many different people and how lifelike the scene seemed to be.

“Come on.” Charlie said eventually as she pulled Castiel away from the scene and towards a small shop. “I don't think Dean would like the way Han Solo was looking at you back there, Cas.” She chuckled as they continued to walk.

“What do you mean?” He asked, utterly bewildered as to why Dean would be enraged at someone smiling towards him.

“Don’t play coy with me, Castiel.” She laughed.

“I am not _‘playing’_ anything; I merely do not understand your comment.”

“Oh, my dear, sweet, naïve Cassie.” She said softly pushing the door open while they walked into the small, oddly quiet book store. “Han was doing a little more than offering a smile to you. And he wasn’t just trying to be friendly for the sake of it. Do you understand what I mean now?” She asked, staring into Castiel’s confused face with a soft smile before eventually giving into the head tilt. “Look Cas, I'm not going to give you the whole speech; just understand that that dude was not thinking about how nice it would be to become friends. Maybe something a little more. Maybe just _one night._ ” Charlie concluded, not looking into Castiel’s face while they both made their way through the book store, side by side.

“You mean..!” Castiel finally blurted out; loud enough to gain a few looks from the others that had entered the store behind them. He looked over to Charlie who was trying, and failing miserably, to hold back her laughter, a small giggle falling past her lips while Castiel’s face grew redder by the minute, his mouth hanging open slightly.

“Oh Cas.” Charlie said between laughter. “You really did not realise that?” She asked once her laughter had finally passed.

“N-no. I-I just thought… I just thought he was being polite.” He said in a voice barely above a whisper while his face maintained the same shade of crimson.

“Come here my sweet, innocent friend. Don’t think about it, just take it as a compliment there were some fine looking women out there.” Charlie said with a smile, her arm linking back through Castiel’s as they continued their journey further into the depths of the store. “You know, if I didn’t have Jo, I would definitely go for a few there.” And with that Castiel finally began to relax again; being back with the safe sanctity that was his friend as he began to feel more human.

“Cassie!” Charlie squealed, loud enough to again bring forth the attention of others while she paid no mind to them, instead just pulling Castiel along with her until they came to a sudden stop in front of a shelf full of colourful books. “They finally have the latest Supernatural book!” she continued, excitedly pulling the book from the shelf to inspect the spine and pages for any damage, putting it back before taking another and nodding enthusiastically, her bright smile radiating.

“So they do.” He commented, his attention being drawn towards the shelf of books to his right. “They even have The Doll House.” He stated absentmindedly, taking the first two books from the shelf and placing them onto another before he took the third out of shelf to again inspect the spine and the pages for any damage. Satisfied with the condition of the book, he put the other two back in their previous place before hugging the book against his chest.

Turning to the other, they both smiled brightly as they continued to clutch the books in their arms before continuing their trek through the rest of the shop, marvelling at the hundreds of books surrounding them.

“Where to now?” Castiel asked after taking the change from the cashier with a bright “Thank you” in his direction before turning back to Castiel, their books in possession as they strode out of the door

“I want food.” Charlie replied simply; their arms interlocking as they continued their track further into town and towards a small café.

“This one.” She said pulling Castiel into the small shop with where they ordered a drink and a slice of pie to share – saving their appetites for the film and the copious amount of food both had planned to purchase in conjunction.

* * *

After sitting for an hour talking about nothing in particular, Castiel and Charlie both grabbed their belongings and walked through the open doors, into the cool afternoon air.

“We’ve still got another hour until the film starts, do you want to go and look anywhere else?” Charlie asked as they were once again passed by a number of Stormtroopers acting animatedly.

“Were to next, young Skywalker?” Charlie asked, breaking the silence, smiling as she heard the soft laughter escape Castiel’s mouth.

“We still need a film.” He said after a moment’s consideration, “Oh, and food! Lots of food.” He continued, animatedly talking with a wide grin plastered on his face.

“As you wish, little one.”

After continuing down the street and taking a right down the conjoining street, they were met with a quaint film shop.

“Best film shop!” Charlie beamed, dragging Castiel into the shop with her.

 “Hey.” She smiled at the young assistant who mirrored her greeting before looking back down to the book she was reading in her lap, quiet conversation murmuring through the small number of customers browsing; four students looking together in the horror aisle with another three looking in separate aisles.

“What film are we looking for?” Charlie asked, turning around to look at Castiel who was staring at the shelf of science fiction films.

“Hmm?” he hummed, turning his attention to the waiting red head before continuing “Oh right, um yes, uhh-” he stammered, looking to his left and his right before Charlie brought him out of the silence that had fallen.

“What about sci-fi then? I mean you're already here and who could complain.” She reasoned, moving to stand beside Castiel as she plucked a case from the shelf.

“Yes, okay. We can look at that. Is there anything you like the look of?” Castiel asked while they both crouched down to look at the lower shelves.

“This one! I have been meaning to watch it for a while, it even has Snape in it!” she beamed thrusting the DVD case into Castiel’s arms.

“ _Galaxy Quest?_ ” he questioned, turning the case around to read the summary; a small chuckle rolling from his tongue as he finished, looking back up to the awaiting red head.

“Well?” she prompted.

“I like it, and I really think everyone else is going to as well. Gabe used to have a bit of a thing for Rickman, especially in Die Hard. Every time he would watch it with me, you could always catch him gazing at him.” Castiel chuckled, reminiscing on the evenings when Gabriel would sit with him in his room, neither speaking just comforted in the silence and solitude that came with the company.

“Oh, this I gotta see.” Charlie laughed, pulling Castiel to his feet in one swift movement.

Making their way to the front of the store, Castiel placed the case onto the counter while the young woman placed her book onto the side, using an old candy wrapper as a book mark to save her place. “Hey, Char.” She smiled, sliding the case forward while she typed into the cash register, soft ‘ _dings’_ resonating lowly.

“Dorothy, how are you?” Charlie asked, leaning her elbows onto the countertop.

“I’m good, still trying to save up so that I can start traveling, I’m almost there, just a few hundred more should do it.” The young woman, Dorothy spoke as she put the case in a bag. “That’ll be three dollars, please.”

Castiel handed the change from his back pocket to Dorothy while Charlie continued. “Hey, that’s awesome, you gotta make sure you bring me something back though, maybe I’ll join you for a short part.” She joked before looking back to her friend. “Where are my manners? Cas, this is Dorothy, childhood friends, stuck together through school until she graduated last year.” Charlie told as Dorothy moved forward, extending her hand to Castiel.

“Pleasure to meet you, I have heard a bit about you; the new, quiet nerdy kid with a warm family.” She recalled, shaking Castiel’s hand tightly, laughing softly when she saw Charlie’s cheeks turn pink.

“Shuddup, you.” Charlie mumbled, moving back from the counter as she looked down to her wrist. “Crap. We gotta go Cassie, the films gonna start soon!”

“Of- of course. I-i-it was- it was l-lovely meeting you, Dorothy.” Castiel stumbled, offering a shy smile before taking his bag and bowing his head while Charlie finished with a few words before bidding farewell and walking out of the store.

“You ready for this film now then!” Charlie bound, jumping in front of Castiel as they walked along the sidewalk.

“Ready as I’ll ever be.” Castiel joked as they began walking once more towards the small theatre.

A short walk later and they were standing in a small queue, waiting to purchase their tickets; Charlie was practically jumping up and down beside Castiel, their arms once again interlocked

“Dude come on, move forward.” Charlie prompted, pulling Castiel with her so that they were closer to the counter and therefore in Charlie’s mind, closer to getting their tickets.

Castiel simply marvelled at his friend; the enthusiasm she had for such simple tasks, such as purchasing a ticket, though also how he could share his excitement with someone, someone that got just as excited over films as he did. This was something he had always been searching for and never really knew. Merely a platonic friend with whom he could share everything and find comfort, to feel as though he had a meaning in the relationship they shared.

Finally as the queue moved forward, Charlie bounced to the counter, her arms upon it with a huge, overly enthusiastic grin on her face while the young assistant who could not have been older than eighteen awkwardly tucked a strand of hair behind his ear, sharing a small, shy smile.

“Hello, how can I help you today?” he asked in a small voice, though it was evident he was trying to speak loud enough to be heard, though not too loud as to draw the attention of those around; something Castiel could easily relate to.

“We would like two tickets to Jurassic World, please!” Charlie stated. Flashing the ever large grin back at the young male. “Ooh, Cassie!” she almost shouted, grabbing the boys arm to show him the Popcorn pots beside her. “Oh, we gotta get these, come on, they are awesome. They are in the freaking shape of an egg! How damn cool is that!”

While the young man stood simply frozen on the spot with a squealing girl in front of him, Castiel merely apologised quietly before Charlie asked for the two pots.

“Thank you.” She shouted with a wide wave as they made their way away from the concessions stand, drinks in one hand, tickets in the other and a bag full of food over the shoulder, and towards the screening rooms, passing the tickets to the attendee before being directed into Room 3.

* * *

"...Yes, but dude; I am so happy that they had continued on from the series rather than starting anew. Having actually acknowledged the previous attempts." Charlie continued as they made their way out of the dark interior and into the harsh daylight; the clouds offering some protection from the brightness while it was still a vast contrast to the subdued, dark cinema lighting within.

"Well, that was a pretty good start for them. Although I am very surprised as to why they had not realised from the three previous attempts that they cannot control the dinosaurs... Even with new technology." He laughs softly, smiling fondly as Charlie interlinks their arms while they stroll leisurely past the shop windows, continuing their conversation in further depth of what they had just seen.

It was not until they had reached the supermarket that their conversation began to subside, their arms still interlocked as they began a slow trek through the aisles.

“Ooh, let’s get some biscuits!“ Charlie cried as she threw a long, red packet at Castiel, who expertly caught it in the basket.

“Okay.” He laughed, moving to catch up with the excited red head. “Wait, we need to get other food too. What about some ice cream and some coke?” he asked as their pace began to slow down once more.

“Alrighty.” She agreed as she began to skip through the aisles, her eyes raking over the aisles content until she came to a violent stop in front of the ice cream freezers causing Castiel to stumble into her with both falling to the ground in a fit of laughter.

“You might want to give some warning next time.” Castiel laughed as he began to pick the few items from the basket that had scattered across the floor on his fall.

Once again standing, Castiel extended his hand to the still giggling Charlie, trying with all his might to pull her to her feet rather than to fall to the floor once more. After a minute, his attempts were successful and they were both staring at the colourful frozen goods with the basket in hand as though nothing had happened.

Continuing within the store, there was a stand of films held on the aisle alongside books. The one DVD that stood to the attention of Castiel was that of _‘The Theory of Everything’_ which he quickly grabbed from the shelf, reviewing the summary of the film and quickly placing it into the basket.

“Hey, Charlie, have you seen this yet?” Castiel asked loudly, grabbing the attention of the redhead sitting to his right on the floor surrounded by books.

Looking up, she squinted her eyes to read the name of the case before shaking her head in answer before turning back to the book in her hand.

“Okay I’m going to get this also then, we could always watch both tonight, or you can come over again to watch another if you want.” He said, moving through the films in order to find one with which was not at all dented before placing it into the basket to continue on beside Charlie to see the books.

Moments later, Charlie broke the silence by saying “I’m gonna get this.”; holding the book high in the air for Castiel to see who readily took it in his hands, reading the summary before passing it back to her.

“It looks good.” He commented, helping the other back to her feet as they put the numerous books that had surrounded her back to the shelves.

“Hey, look!” Charlie spoke, grabbing Castiel’s arm to bring him back to her before she continued once more; “You get a free book with it! It’s the tale as told by his first wife.” Once she had finished speaking, she took the book from the shelf, handing it to her as they then began to make their way around the remainder of the store.

After twenty minutes of walking through the aisles pointing out everything they saw to the other, the two teens finally found their way to the checkouts to pay for their items.

Digging the change out of their pockets, both handed over a small amount of coins and crushed dollar notes to the less than happy cashier sporting a fake smile that one could see through from a mile away, they finally grabbed a bag each and began to exit the shop ready for their small walk home.

* * *

Walking up the path and to the door, there were muffled voices that could be heard through the thick wood. Both gave the other a wary look before Castiel silently opened the door, both placing the bags against the wall and toeing off their shoes, they made their way through the house and towards the source of the commotion.

 In the end, both came to a steady halt outside of the kitchen doorway, peeping their heads around the corner so that they could see without being seen. Once in position, they were met with the sight of Michael standing with his arms crossed tightly over his chest while Gabriel and Lucifer continued to literally point the finger at one another.

“But I don't even know where the cling film is!” Gabriel argued, breaking the intense staring between the brothers.

As soon as the words registered in Castiel's mind, he groaned quietly, knowing they had had this exact same argument on many occasions. Looking over to Charlie, he saw that she was looking at him with a slightly confused expression. Moving closer, he whispered in her ear “Look at Michael’s trousers and then think back to Gabriel’s comment.”

Moment later, Charlie was stood wide eyed, holding her hand over her mouth to keep in the laughter that threatened to escape.

“And as you can probably guess; this is not the first time this sort of thing has happened, I regret to say that I was the one targeted the last time.” Castiel said with a light tone to his voice, as though there was not any anger in his words, though rather slight amusement, especially considering the fact that he was not the target of any of the pranks this time.

“Bull shit!” Lucifer all but yelled as his hands flailed in the air, bringing both Castiel and Charlie back to the confrontation in front of them,

“Language!” Michael interrupted which again caused soft laughter to escape both Castiel and Charlie as they remembered the film they had seen earlier.

“Yeah, Luci.” Gabriel mocked, sticking his tongue out, “Anyway, Luci is the one who cooks, he is the one with film usage, blame him.”

“Shut up, you’re the immature one, and we all know that!” Lucifer quibbled.

In response, Gabriel merely stuck his tongue out, making a striking resemblance towards that of a four year old in his actions.

Castiel cleared his throat as the argument ended, bringing attention to them both stood in the corner of the doorway with what could only be described as shit eating grins on their faces.

“You heard all of that, huh.” Lucifer spoke first; it was more of a statement rather than a question at this moment.

“Yep.” Charlie said happily, moving further into the room.

“You urinate on yourself there, mike?” Castiel mocked; his comment earning laughter from both Gabriel and Lucifer while Michael merely stared at his youngest brother with a death glare, _if looks could kill,_ Castiel thought.

“Well, you can put a sock in it, kid.” Michael stated, “Did you guys get a film then?” he asked, changing the subject as the other two brothers turned on the two teens also with expectant faces.

“Of course we did.” Castiel said, turning to his brother with a look that asked as if that was something he really needed to ask of him.

“Of course you did.” Michael chucked.                      

“Well then, care to enlighten us as to what are we watching tonight?” Lucifer chimed in.

“Ahh, now that would ruin the surprise!” Castiel giggled before remembering the bags in the hall, the ice cream that was probably melted by now. “Shit!” He mumbled before darting from the room.

A faint “language!” Was all he heard in response before he grabbed the bags and walked back into the kitchen.

“Where's the fire?” Gabriel laughed.

“No, no fire. But melted ice cream.” Castiel said moving around the others to place the ice cream in the freezer while Charlie took the biscuits, moving around the bodies to place them in the cupboard alongside the bottle of coke.

“Oh Cassie, you didn't have to.” Gabriel commented, eyeing the tub before the draw was closed and the frozen treat was out of his sight.

“I didn't.”

“Sharing is caring little bro, sharing is caring.” Gabriel mocked as he moved around his siblings, making his way out of the kitchen with a smile across his face.

As soon as Gabriel was out of the room, Lucifer piped up, his attention being brought to Michael as he spoke aloud. “You know I didn’t put the cling film on the toilet, right. I mean I only did that when we were young. Do you remember when we did that to Gabe and the kid peed everywhere; took him half an hour to clean the bathroom and even then it smelt like urine for a few days after that.” he laughed loudly, Michael joining in moments later.

“Yes, Luce. I know it wasn’t you. I would have thought that after so many years you would know that I can tell the difference between the pranks you pull and those of Gabriel’s.”

“Just checking.” Lucifer smiled. “Now put food in the oven and let’s watch the film Cassie got.”

Castiel beamed at the mention of his film.

“You staying for tea, Charlie?” Michael asked as he took a few pizzas out of the freezer and turned the oven on ready.

“Only if you’ll have me.”

“Well, it’s a little late for that now, Red.” Lucifer laughed, “You're here more than you are your own home, so I think we can assume that she will be staying for tea again.”

“Oh, Luci. You know me too well.” She joked, pinching the larger man’s cheeks before practically dragging Castiel into the living room where they found Gabriel sprawled against the floor, cushions surrounding him as he laughed loudly against an episode of Spongebob, Castiel and Charlie moving to sit behind him as they both made themselves comfortable, watching until the end of the episode when Michael and Lucifer returned, pizzas in hand, passing them out between the five of them.

“What film are we watching then, Cassie?” Michael asked as he pushed a slice of pizza into his mouth, the cheese falling and burning his fingers in the process. “Shit.” He cursed sucking the burning cheese from his hand only to be met by a smirk from Lucifer which earnt the other a playful shove.

“The Theory of Everything.” He replied as he placed the plate on the table before taking the disk out of its case to be pushed into the DVD player and taking the remote back with him while they waited for the film to start.

* * *

Half way into the film, Gabriel burst out with a loud “I wanna try it!” Startling all of the other Novak’s who were quietly watching the film, watching as characters danced across the screen, their suits and dresses illuminating in the UV lighting. The only thought in everyone's mind was how incredibly beautiful the sight was, and how they would in fact all want to try that, and that it would be likely to happen in the present future.

“Okay.” Michael responded simply as they all sat back into the film, listening to the explanations, watching the characters run around the screen together, laughing and spinning, happiness evident in their actions.

* * *

When the film finally came to a close, Castiel sat with a smug grin on his face, honestly happy that everyone had enjoyed the film though also at the prospect of an experiment.

“You've seen this before?” Lucifer asked as he removed the DVD to place it back in its case, changing the television input back to the channels.

“Only once.” Castiel responded, pulling his phone out of his pocket and noticing a number of neglected text messages – his heart skipping a beat as he noticed they were all from a singular green eyed beauty.

“Well, you're lucky it was good then.” Michael chuckled, before turning to Lucifer beside him. “Don't forget it’s you choosing the film next week.” To which he was met with a mischievous grin. “No, no. Nothing with clowns, no. You put that on and… And I'm going to call…” Michael spoke rapidly before stopping abruptly, his mind in thought before he shouted the name “Sophie!” Into the still air.

Everyone in the room turned to Lucifer, trying to decipher his reaction against the name ‘Sophie’. All knew of Michaels clown dear, ever since his fifth birthday, the man had never trusted another clown, how violently he tried to convince everyone that it was a murderous clown, though apparently only children could see the evil in it – hence why none of the adults had ever believed him, it had just been put down to an ‘ _irrational, childhood fear’_.

His brother’s reaction on the other hand was less visible other than the slight stiffness of his body, only his eyes portrayed his fear. This was something new, no one had ever heard of a _Sophie_ before.

Charlie though was the one to break that silence with the question that was on everyone's mind. “Who's _Sophie_?”

With a slow, hesitant exhale, lucifer turned his form so that he was facing the three younger teens, though not before whispering “asshole” under his breath.

As the three faces watched him expectantly, Lucifer huffed a second, deeper breath as he began his tale. “It all started last January, I got a new job in that small café around the corner from our house; it was easy to get to and had good hours. Well the first week into that job, there was a blonde woman, she was a year older than I was and she ordered a small hot chocolate with cream, sprinkles and marshmallows. Well I thought she was pretty you know, she was, a real looker. Well for the whole of that week, she came in at exactly eight twenty-seven on the dot, and ordered that same drink. Each time, while I was making her drink we would talk a bit. This continued on for a few months, regular like clockwork. Until one day, she asked me out. Obviously I accepted, I mean I thought I would have been mad not to. So we went on our date, I took her to a small restaurant not far out and Mike let me use his car so I could impress her, which suffice to say it worked.

“We got to the restaurant, there was a young girl, Jackie, she was in one of my classes in college, so when I gave her our reservations, we divulged into a little conversation, in that, Sophie began to snap a little, I just assumed usual female rivalry and let it be. It was then through the meal that Jackie was no longer serving us, instead a young guy. I just assumed that Jackie was busy. It turned out later she was not.

“From there, things just began to spiral deeper, I mean we would have crazy sex, she was amazing wit that! That then took my thoughts away from her personality for a while.

“But then she would want to know exactly where I was, every minute of the day, who I was with, even began telling me who I could see. I ended up having to stop talking to a lot of my friends, mostly female. The breaking point was when she began coming back to the coffee shop, not just her usual morning visit, but throughout the day and she would just watch me, I almost got fired after news got back that she was threatening female customers and employees.

“After that, I decided enough was enough, I tried to break up with her on so many occasions, but each time she would confuse me with sex, distract me even and then again and again. Eventually Mike had to get involved. I went out of town for a few days to stay with our cousin, Balthazar, when she came around, Mike told her it was over. He said she took it well. Not as well as I had hoped, she sent me many videos, a number of which consisted of her burning my possessions, anything I had left there. Though the last one was of her climbing into my room through the window, full on scaling the wall to burn my favourite top.

“I ended up having to get a restraining order. Turns out I'm not the only one to have done so; a number of other guys had the same thing done to them.  We haven't heard from her yet, so I am hoping that is it. And if this asshole does anything there, I am going to create an army of clowns which will dismember and eat you, bring you back to life and so the same thing over and over!” he threatened, turning his gaze to Michael on the last part of his speech, noting the partly apologetic gaze from his brother at the mention of this woman’s name.

The three young faces all stared back at him in amazement; both Castiel and Gabriel having heard snippets about Luci’s new girlfriend, though having never met her, nor having particularly heard much from Lucifer himself, they both merely assumed the two had broken up and that was it. Though it turned out that was not the case.

It was once again Charlie who took it upon herself to break the unintentional silence that had fallen over the ground once more. “Well shit. You know you should probably get onto deleting some of your background so that she can't trace you. I can do that for you if you want.” She offered with a shrug of her shoulders as though it was no big deal.

When she looked around to see all of the heads now staring at her with intense concentration she continued, “What? It's not like it's hard to do. A few swipes of the keyboard and you can be a whole new person. You could create a new identity and no one would see you again.”

“Charlie, remind me never to piss you off.” Michael laughed.

“You got it, McCoy!” She quipped, smiling at the chuckle she heard from Castiel to her side.

* * *

The remainder of the evening concluded in a similar manner until eventually Charlie had to return to her own, cold and empty home before school was to be attended the following morning.

Castiel on the other hand retreated to his room where moments later the Batman theme tune began to play from his phone. Digging the device out of his pocket, he saw that the screen was lit with a picture of his boyfriend laughing; his green eyes twinkling in the sun light, freckles standing out across his face and leather jacket wrapped lightly around his shoulders.

Castiel spent so long just looking at the picture that by the time the device went black again, it had only just registered that he was being called. Quickly unlocking his phone, he tapped Dean’s contact, plugging his headphones into the device and into his ears before lying back against the pillows on his bed.

“What took you so long?” was the only form of greeting Castiel was offered.

“Well hello to you too.” Castiel laughed.

“Yeah, hey.” Dean said in a softer tone, “but seriously, what did take you so long? You always have your phone in your pocket. I was beginning to think something had happened.”

“I am sorry, Dean. I was… distracted.”

“Well next time get distracted later; I missed you and your voice.” Dean trailed off, mumbling the latter part.

Hearing Dean’s admission, every time he would tell Castiel that he missed him, to know that he can actually have that effect on someone brought out both a wide grin and a slight blush across his cheeks. “We have been talking today and you are going to see me at school tomorrow.” Castiel reminded him.

“Yeah, well that was only a few messages and tomorrow is so far away and I can’t come see you.” He complained, groaning loudly into the microphone.

“You're so needy with a broken leg.” Castiel laughed.

“Shut up.” Dean mumbled.

 "But you do realise that tomorrow is an inset day, right? Come see me, we still need to go to the cinema, maybe we can do that?" Castiel asked, unsure to Dean's reaction.

"Really?! You could have told me about that sooner." Dean chuckled before continuing in a much more enthusiastic tone. "Of course I am gonna come see you! Why the hell would I give up an opportunity like that, Angel."

Castiel squealed quietly, a smile shining across his face. "I can't wait to see you, Dean!" He whispered sincerely. 

Their conversation continued into the early hours of the morning before Castiel eventually fell asleep with his headphones in his ears, Dean’s soft voice working as a lullaby.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a little side note, the supernatural books are mentioned, the same as they are in the series, but rather than being written about Sam and Dean, they are instead seen to be fictional.  
> I hope you enjoyed reading this. Please tell me what you thought of it - comments are the only way I can improve. ( :


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